Hearts Ease
by Ashteldar's Jewel
Summary: Naraku's last act before his death shatters the jewel. But as the hunt continues, Kagome is haunted by dreams of a child locked in a dark room. Can she save him before it is too late?
1. Chapter 1

Heart's Ease

By Ashteldar's Jewel

Chapter One

No Exit

_It was the second night in a row that Kagome had the same dream. Not frightening at all but actually quite boring. She found herself alone in a dark and dank stone room. A small room, she'd paced it out. She'd dragged her fingers along the walls trying to find an exit. It was only three paces wide and five paces long. The ceiling was too high to touch, even when she jumped. Knowing the whole time that it was all a dream, with nothing to see, or hear, nothing to feel, except damp stone. And so she had sat there for two nights leaning against a cold, hard wall, her arms around her knees, within a kind of sentient, listening silence and talked out loud about nothing in particular, just any thing that came to mind, because it seemed to her that any noise at all was what the silence desired. And then after hours and hours of nothing much, Inuyasha's foot would prod her awake. And hey! For once in her life she didn't even mind being woken up so rudely. _

-- -- 

Ironically, it had so far been a beautiful day. The best weather they'd seen during their weeks of searching. Feathery gleaming white cirrus clouds against a deep blue sky and a warm sun, not too hot or too cool. And of course no one could enjoy it. And Kagome had forgotten to do her Naraku is dead happy dance when she woke up that morning. Yep Naraku was dead and it was a beautiful day.

The group had been traveling back to Kaede's village for the last two days. Kagome dragging Inuyasha, kicking and screaming the whole way, (Kagome was kicking and screaming at him of course). Sango to recover from the terrible bruises and cuts and Miroku from the poison they had received from a particularly pesky humanoid lower youkai possessed by two jewel shards and also possessed of some kind of noxious poison powder they were unaware of until it was too late and Miroku had already sucked it up into his wind tunnel.

Sango riding on Kirara's back with Miroku unconscious in front of her, flinched, as Kagome screamed once more, "Inuyasha! If you make me say the 'S' word again, I won't stop saying it until you reach the center of the earth!" Birds shrieked as they took off from the trees lining the road and her voice echoed off the steep sides of the valley they were traversing.

"But Kagome," Inuyasha whined, with his ears pinned back, "I just said that we could send those two back alone, and keep going on our own."

"And that was about the hundredth time you've said that this morning alone. I told you I'm staying with Sango and Miroku. If you want to go shard hunting you'll just have to go alone. I'm not abandoning my friends!"

Well you're abandoning me aren't you? I mean you promised right? And now all you ever want to do is '_go home'_. You don't need those tests and things. And now it's all the time _'someone's hurt, we're tired; we need supplies, we've got to go home'_. Well we're not supposed to be '_going home'_ all the time; we're supposed to be hunting jewel shards!"

"Well Inuyasha," Kagome, intoned coldly, "that's all very true, and what's also very true, is that some of us are hurt! Two of your friends are hurt, and I just can't believe how utterly selfish you're being right now. And if you say one more word, just one more word, you won't like the consequences!" Inuyasha's ears went back again as the last word came out of her mouth in a shriek.

"Ow, Kagome," Shippo whimpered, from his perch on Kagome's shoulder, "that hurt!"

"Oh Shippo, I'm so sorry. And if _Inuyasha_ can keep his mouth shut for a while, it won't happen again!"

"Yeah well shit, what about my ears?" A sulking Inuyasha muttered under his breath for once wise enough to be unheard. Then his ears perked up as he heard a faint moan from the monk.

"Inuyasha," called the taijiya softly, "we need to stop for a rest."

"All right, I smell clean water ahead, near that clump of trees." Sango nodded and tightened her grasp on Miroku, as Kirara lengthened her stride. Inuyasha glanced back at Kagome, to see her tilt her head and grin goofily in approval. He just turned his nose up in contempt and exclaimed "Keh!"

'Ah,' thought Kagome, 'Inuyasha chose a good spot'. Kirara crouched down so that Inuyasha could easily lift Miroku off of her back and he hefted him into the shade under a huge tree next to Sango. Then the fire-cat transformed into her kitten form and curled up into the taijiya's lap purring. Sango tangled her hand into Kirara's fur and leaned her head back against the cool, rough trunk and closed her eyes.

Kagome plopped her ungainly yellow back-pack to the ground and stretched her arms over her head. Shippo was already burrowing into the pack and pulled out the empty water bottles. Inuyasha was collecting wood for a fire. Kagome pulled out her small kettle, and followed Shippo towards the stream. "I have enough ramen left for one more meal." She called out to the hanyou.

It wasn't but a quarter of a hour later, that Kagome stood over the fire one finger on her lip, her other hand combing back her hair behind one ear, her thoughts running around in her head like a hamster on a wheel. 'Okay…' she thought, 'two maybe three more hours and we'll be back at Kaede's village. Meanwhile water is boiling for lunch, Shippo got water; Oh yeah don't forget the purifying tablets. Ah, check Sango's bandages; give Miroku another dose of antidote. Um yeah, what else?' "Arg! I'm just too tired to think!" 'Oops! Did I just say that out loud?'

"Kagome, are you all right?" Shippo squeaked, and she felt his tiny hand on the calf of her leg.

"Of course I'm all right Shippo." She replied, and stepped back from the fire to kneel next him. She put her hand on his shoulder, and looked reassuringly into his huge emerald eyes. "I'm just tired. I've had a weird dream the last two nights, and I just didn't sleep well."

"A dream, Kagome," asked Sango, concerned. "Did it have anything to do with that demon we just fought?"

Kagome shook her head, and laughed. "I don't see how it could be. It was actually more boring than anything. I was just sitting around in this dark room, nothing else. I wasn't scared or anything. But, anyway let me at those bandages, there's time for me to check them before we eat."

Less than an hour later, they were back on the road. Moving faster now, since Miroku had regained consciousness and Inuyasha had finally consented to carrying Kagome.

-- -- 

4


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

A Room of Dark Stone

-- -- 

_Darkness again, 'oh great' thought Kagome, 'here we go again.' And before she could stop herself, she had hollered, "Hey! Anybody, what in hell is going on here?" _

_In the ringing silence after her shout, she thought she heard a small whimper. "Shippo, is that you?" Only silence. "Hello, is someone there? Did I hear someone?" Kagome tilted her head to the side, listening intently. 'Huh, over there to the left, wasn't that a rustle?'_

'_Well Okay,' she thought, let's just crawl over there and find out.' "Hey, if someone is there, please speak up." Groping her way along the wall, she stopped for a moment and heard what sounded like stifled breathing and a surreptitious rustle of cloth. Then suddenly she was assaulted by a small squealing body. She grasped hold of it, as it struggled and scratched at her arms, trying to get away from her. "Wait, wait, its okay, really, I'm not going to hurt you." 'It's just a baby' she thought in shock. Holding the shaking child in her left arm, she ran her right hand over the tiny body. 'He's a boy. Pointed ears and claws, he's a youkai, and he's even smaller than Shippo! Who would lock such a small child in a dark room alone?' "Shh, shh, shh, everything's going to be okay." She whispered. "My name is Kagome, can you tell me your name and where we are?" But the child just whimpered and shook in her arms. She cupped her hand around the back of his head and stroked his long, loose hair until she felt him calm. "All right, that's okay, can you talk at all?" She felt him shake his head 'no'. At that moment her hand brushed over one of the boy's pointed ears and he giggled, a sweet high pitched sound that had Kagome exclaiming "Kawaii!"_

"_Hm, well I've got to call you something, um, how about if I call you Koi?" The boy seemed to think about it for a moment, then, giggled again and emphatically shook his head 'no'. "Okay, how about Ai?" Again he shook his head, 'no'. "Um, let's see… Oh, how about if I call you 'Otouto'. A long silence, then he nodded. "Okay then my Otouto-kun, hm, lets see, would you like for me to tell you a story?" Again he nodded. "Well I have another otouto, his name is Sota." And she was off on a story about what her little brother had done the last time she was home._

_Two Sota stories, a folk tale and two lullabies later, the child had dozed off in her arms. 'I don't get it,' she thought, 'this whole thing is insane. Why would I dream about a child, a youkai child that I've never even met? And why in Kami's name, would anyone leave this poor kid alone in the dark? He can't even be the human equivalent of a two year old. Of course, I don't even know if this kid is real, or just a figment of my imagination. Oh well, hopefully someone will come for him soon and I'll wake up, and it will all be over'_

_Kagome tilted her head back against the cold wall and tried to doze off herself. 'Man, I wish someone would turn up the heat in here. Huh, wait is Otouto-kun getting lighter?' Anxiously she grasped the child harder, only to feel his body evaporate from her arms. "Otouto, Otouto-kun are you there?" Only silence answered her._

_Minutes passed, perhaps an hour, she could only guess, when suddenly she was blinded by a blazingly bright light. Before her eyes could recover, she heard a sound as if someone had dumped a bag of potatoes on the hard stone floor and a muffled squeal of pain. Then the light was gone. "Hey, who's there?" She shouted. "Otouto-kun, is that you?" _

_To her right Kagome could hear what sounded like muffled moaning, so she began to crawl that way, sweeping her hands before her. When she finally found him, he was curled up on his left side. Kagome gasped when he flinched away from her touch wordlessly crying out. "What's wrong? Are you hurt?" she ran her hand over his shoulder as gently as she could, then down his arms. Only to find that his right arm bent in a way that it shouldn't._

"_Oh Kami," She groaned," What has happened to you, did someone do this to you?" The boy just lay there shivering. She cradled his head in her hand. "Otouto-kun, I want to pick you up now, Okay?" When she felt him nod, she slowly eased him into her lap and scooted back until her back was against the wall. That was when she realized that the young youkai was heavier and slightly taller than before. 'Why, he's older,' she thought. "Otouto-kun, do you remember me, Kagome?"_

_The boy raised his head and craned it towards her as if he was trying to see her. "Mm hm, 'Gome, I 'member you. You were here b'fore. _

"_What happened to you, Otouto-kun, why are you here?"_

_He shifted in her lap and she felt him gingerly lifting his broken arm into his lap. "I was in a tree. I fell. But I cried. So Sensei put me here."_

_Kagome felt a flash of intense anger. "Let me get this straight, your teacher locked you in this room because you cried when you broke your arm."_

"_Mm hm, I get put in here when I'm bad."_

"_Oh, Otouto-kun, crying isn't being bad, sometimes it's the only thing you can do._

"_Now then, I'm thinking that I should go ahead and try to set this arm for you. Other wise it will heal crooked."_

"_No."_

"_But, why ever not. I'm really not that bad of a healer you know."_

"_Won't heal, nothing heals here."_

_Kagome felt her face grow stiff and hot with rage. 'Kami, what is wrong with these people?' Carefully, she reined back her temper until she could speak calmly. "Otouto-kun, is there anything that I can do to help you?"_

"_A story?"_

"_Okay. A Sota story? Or, I know, I will tell you a story about my best friend Inuyasha."_

_So Kagome told him a baka Inuyasha story until she had the young boy giggling, then she sang lullabies until sometime in the darkness, she felt a large dirty foot prodding her awake._

-- -- 

Kagome spent that entire morning in a thoughtful silence. Mechanically she went about helping Kaede prepare breakfast and then gather fresh herbs from the forest. Kaede kept an attentive eye on her as they wandered through the fields around Inuyasha's Forest. Finally Kaede spoke up while they bundled the herbs for drying.

"Kagome, Child , is there something troubling you?"

Sunlight slanted through the half open shed door and reflected a watery light off the polished wood floor onto the weathered face of the elderly Miko. She sat cross legged next to a full basket, sorting the gathered herbs while Kagome sat nearby cutting hemp twine to wrap around the stems for hanging. After a moment to think things through, Kagome spoke; "Kaede-bachan, I had a dream last night. Well actually for the last three nights, all about the same place. But nothing happened until last night. Um, is there anything you can tell me about how to tell a true dream from well a regular dream?"

"Well child, perhaps if you told me what happened."

"Okay. But it's kinda hard to really say anything about the first two nights, since nothing really happened. I was in this dark room, it was like a prison or a cell or something. But it felt like someone was listening so I just talked to myself all night long."

"And how did you feel Kagome? Were you afraid?"

"No if anything, I was just bored."

"And the person you thought was there? Did you feel anything from them?"

Kagome shook her head. "Uhn uhn, I really can't say that there was a person there, just that it felt like something was listening."

"I see. But last night it was different?"

"Yeah, there was a kid there, a little boy, actually he turned out to be youkai." And so Kagome went on to tell Kaede about everything that had happened in her dream. "And then I was so angry that I forgot to ask the kid where we were or even what his real name was. What do you think Kaede, could it have been real?"

"Hmm, I've never has a true dream myself, Kagome, but from what I've been told, only the true dreamer herself knows whether or not the dream is true. So child how do _you_ feel about it?"

Kagome contemplated the small blade in her right hand turning it slowly so the light reflected, flashing around the small shed. "I think it was real. But whether it has already happened or will happen in the future I don't know." Her voice tightened with anger. "I wish I could get my hands on the people responsible for that poor kid, but I'm afraid that all my anger is futile. And that I will never…"

Kaede leaned forward and laid a solicitous hand on Kagome's knee. "Perhaps you should speak to Sango, her village had great knowledge of youkai affairs. She may even have heard of your dark room. There can not be many places where youki does not work. And then if you dream of your young Otouto again, perhaps you might be able to find out more from the boy."

"Oh," Kagome exclaimed, "I forgot, my Miko powers didn't work there either, When I tried to take away some of the pain I felt like I didn't have any power at all!"

"This is bad, Kagome, its quite ominous for there to be a prison warded against both youki and the powers of a priestess, perhaps you shouldn't pursue this.

It's too late Kaede, I'm already involved. But I tell you what, I'll ask Sango about it this afternoon, when I check her bandages. I promise I won't do anything until I have more information"

"Very good, and now lets see if we can figure out why you started having these dreams now. Tell me about the youkai that you defeated."

5


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Oops forgot this. I don't own any of the Inuyasha characters or stories. Except any OC I might come up with.

--+--

A/N: Thank you to Silva Moonlite for being the first reviewer for this, my first story. I appreciate any feed back I might receive.

--+--

Hearts Ease

Chapter 3

Songs in the Darkness

_Kagome awoke again in the dark, 'Well, surprise, surprise I'm back here again!' Leaning back against the cold stone, she heard a faint rustling of cloth and padding of bare feet. Just as she opened her mouth to speak she heard a quiet sniffing and a high pitched voice called out "'Gome, is that you?" _

"_Yes, Otouto-kun, how are you doing today?"_

_A small body padded over and sat down beside her. Kagome scooted a little closer until their sides were touching. "You didn't answer me Otouto-kun, are you well today?"_

"_Yes."_

_Kagome smiled when she felt the boy lean closer to her. They sat in silence and then she felt a small hand on her knee. "'Gome, where've you been? Missed you."_

_The girl gasped, "Oh I'm so sorry, I don't have any control over when I come here. Otouto-kun, has it been very long?"_

_The child sighed and leaned his forehead on her shoulder. "A long time" He sighed._

_Kagome reached out her hand to brush against his cheek only to feel a sticky crust on his face. She frowned in the dark. The hardening crust was also in his hair and on his clothes. "What's this Otouto-kun, I thought you weren't hurt?"_

"_Not mine" he whined, restlessly scrubbing his hands over his face. "I want it off."_

"_But, then whose is it?" She asked picking at the crust gently with her finger nails._

"_The man, the man they were killing."_

"_What, what did you say? A man was killed?"_

"_Lots of men" the boy answered softly. "Mother said they had been really bad." He swallowed heavily. "The man with the sword gave them a knife, and they stuck it in their own belly, and then he cut off their heads. But the last one he missed." His voice rose almost to hysteria. "He missed and the blood, his blood went all over me!" _

"_I threw-up" he whispered. "Mother was so angry, she killed the man with the sword, and _Sensei_ put me here again."_

_Kagome gathered the shaking youkai boy onto her lap and quietly asked "your Sensei put you in this room, because you threw up?" The boy nodded yes. "How often do you get put here?"_

"_Lots" he replied, unhappily. "I missed you."_

"_Oh Otouto-kun, I would be with you every time, if I could." Kagome sighed. "Otouto, can you tell me where we are?"_

"_We're in the punishment room in Mother's castle. …'Gome, how did you get here? Are you a _Tenshi_?" He asked so forlornly that Kagome felt her eyes start to leak._

"_No sweetheart, I'm not an angel, just another ordinary human"_

"_Human? I've never met a human before. Do you really have horns and eat babies?"_

_Kagome laughed and hugged him. "No, I promise you, that I have never had horns, and No one I've ever known has ever eaten a baby. I mean that's just really gross."_

"_Gross?"_

"_Sickening."_

"_Oh."_

_She picked up his small clawed hands and placed them on her forehead. "Here feel my head; see, no horns."_

"_Huh."_

'_He almost sounds disappointed,' Kagome thought with a smile. "Okay, now that we have that straight, I would like to know what your real name is, and your mother's, if you can tell me, that is?"_

"_Huh?"_

"_What's your name?"_

"_Don't know I haven't earned it yet."_

"_You have to earn your name?"_

"_Uh Huh."_

"_But surely your family must call you something?"_

"_Mother just calls me 'my son', I don't have any other family besides Father, _Sensei_ just calls me 'you little brat', some of the others call me 'Daichi'." _

_Kagome giggled at the 'you little brat' remark. "So are you that much of a little brat my Otouto-kun?_

_Her _Otouto_ giggled back, "Sometimes, I like to hide from him and then I'm really good at stalking and pouncing him, his face gets really red." The boy shrugged. "But then he beats me and throws me in here." _

"_I'm sorry Otouto-kun, where I come from adults aren't allowed to beat up little kids."_

_Kagome sighed, thinking about Shippo and Inuyasha. "Anyway, 'Daichi' is a good name, would you prefer that I call you that?"_

"_Nah, I like _'_Otouto_'_ better. …'Gome, can I call you '_Ani-ue_'?"_

"_Of course Otouto-kun_, _I would love it for you to call me your big sister! But now, then how about your Mother, do you know her name?"_

"_Lady _Hikaru_."_

"_Ah, that is a pretty name. Do you know where her castle is located?"_

"_He shook his head 'no' "I just know it's high."_

"_High? You mean like high in the mountains?"_

_Otouto just shrugged._

"_Okay, and your Father, do you know his name?"_

"_I think his name is Ichiro." _

'_Hm, well none of that is too helpful in finding out where we are. Oh well.' "Well, can I ask you just one more question?"_

_Kagome felt him nod._

"_Great! I was just wondering how old you are?"_

_There was a long silence, as the boy thought it out, still scratching at the dried blood in his hair. "Um, somewhere between thirteen and fourteen decades, I think." _

"_Wow!" Kagome exclaimed, laughing, "Otouto-kun, I'm only eighteen; I should be calling you _'Aniki'_, instead of _Otouto."

_Otouto giggled, and laid his head in Kagome's lap. 'Oh my', she thought, 'this little kid, who's no bigger than a five year old is older than my Great Grandfather. Wow! I wonder how old **Shippo** really is. I never really thought about it, he just seemed to be about six or seven.'_

_She felt sad, it had finally penetrated. 'I always avoided thinking about it, but I won't live long enough to see Shippo grow-up. He ages too slowly. Oh well as Scarlett O'Hara would say…"I'll think about it tomorrow."'_

"_Hey Otouto-kun, how about I teach you a song or two? It'll give us something to do to pass the time."_

_She waited until she felt his nod, and then began to sing one of the children's songs she had learned in elementary school. After a few repetitions the boy was able to join in. But before she could start teaching him the second song, his voice faded and she was left alone. _

_--+ --_

There was a hand on her shoulder roughly shaking her awake.

"Kagome? Kagome, why are you crying?" It was Inuyasha. And with out even thinking about it Kagome threw herself into his arms. After a long moment of shock the _hanyou_ wrapped his arms around her and started rubbing her back. "What's wrong Kagome? Were you dreaming 'bout that kid again?"

Kagome sniffled and nodded into his shoulder. "Yeah, I wish there was something I could do about it."

"Keh'" Inuyasha scoffed, "I don't know why you spend so much worri'n 'bout a stupid dream. We're fuck'n wasting time here any way."

She stiffened and stepped back, and that's when the girl noticed '**it'**. Or rather the lack of 'it', 'it' being the sun. "Inuyasha, it's not even dawn yet, why did you wake me up!"

"Hey, at least I didn't use my foot this time!"

"You, you are so unbelievably inconsiderate Inuyasha! Now stop yelling at me, or I'll say the word!"

"Bitch! You yelled at me first!"

"I told you never to call me that again! SIT! SIT! SIT!"

For a long moment she stood fuming over the fallen _hanyou, _ashe mumbled curses into the floor, contemplating whether or not she should say 'it' again. But then, Kagome heard Miroku's voice outside the little hut, "Inuyasha! Did you get Kagome?"

She stuck her head out past the bamboo door curtain. "What's up Miroku?"

"Hurry Kagome, two of the children didn't come home last night!"

"Oh no, I'll get dressed right away!" On her way to her back-pack she kicked the still stricken boy in the side. "That's for not telling me right away!"

"Bitch!" was his still muffled reply.

"SIT!"

--+--

Moments later, Kagome joined the pacing monk in the street, followed by the pouting Inuyasha.

"Who's missing Miroku?" Kagome panted, still out of breath.

"Izumi and Minoru, they went out an hour before dusk to take food and a message from the head-man to the goat herders on _Kikugoru_ Peak. When they didn't return, the head-man figured that they were staying overnight with the herders. But one of the herders showed up half an hour ago to report that they have been seeing lights in the forest. The children never made it to their camp."

Izumi and Minoru, respectively fourteen and twelve years old were two of the most responsible young teens in the village and were therefore often used for errands and other jobs. They would definitely have come home if they could have.

"Sango is out with Kirara?"

"Yes, she headed West, toward the peak and Shippo went northwest in his seagull form. The rest of the village is scattered everywhere."

Kagome nodded, and then frowned. There was a slight nagging at the edge of her perception. Ah, there it was. "Inuyasha! I think there's a jewel shard heading northeast, but I can barely feel it. It's moving too fast!"

"Inuyasha, we need your nose here!" exclaimed the monk. "We'll never find the children with out you!"

"Keh!" exclaimed the white-haired boy, dancing in place. "Miroku, you only compliment me when you want something. We need that shard!"

"Inuyasha, we can go after the shard later." Kagome said, wishing that she had never opened her mouth. Those kids need us now!"

Inuyasha muttered to himself, something about helpless, weak humans. But then he tipped his head in a sly way. "Alright, but only if Kagome promises that she won't 'sit' me for a whole month."

"Too much! Two days!"

"Two weeks!"

"One Week!"

"Done! Let's go!" Kagome leapt on Inuyasha's back and they took off onto the still dark forest; Miroku running behind.

--+--

Inuyasha picked up the trail easily on the well trodden path that cut through the western forest. The villagers had been warned to stay off of the path so that the scent wouldn't be muddied. Twice he had to let Kagome down off of his back so he could follow the trail to where the children had stopped to relieve themselves. The sun was just rising above the horizon, when Inuyasha finally stopped again, let Kagome down, and went to his hands and knees. "This is where they left the path and didn't come back. I don't get it, the scent goes a few meters out that way," he gestured to the rising sun. "First Minoru's then a few steps later Izumi's also vanishes. But there's no scent of a youkai or animal that might have taken them. Miroku, do you sense a demonic aura?"

"The young monk shook his head. "I sense nothing Inuyasha."

What about you Kagome? Do you sense anything?

Kagome turned slowly once in place. "There's something here, but it's so faint…" She turned once again with her eyes closed, then again.

"Well! Hurry up wench, you're wasting time!"

"I'm trying you baka!"

"Inuyasha! Kagome! This is not the time!"

Kagome dipped her head in apology, "Sorry Miroku. Wait! Let me try one more time." The teen felt like an idiot as she held out her right arm at shoulder height and turned in place again with her eyes closed. She tried to imagine that she was a dowsing rod or some kind of wacky compass that detected vague wrongness. Then she felt it, a slight tug on her senses. 'Yes,' her arm swung back and forth at a forty degree angle. She opened her eyes when she felt her hand tugged to a stop. She was pointing northeast.

Never one to pass up an 'I told you so', Inuyasha punched Miroku on the shoulder and yelled "See, ya should' a listened to me in the first place!"

"Well, we didn't know then Inuyasha!" Kagome yelled. "And really we still don't know that this even means anything, it's so not much to go on."

"Keh! Yeah, like you could sense anything important anyway wench!"

"Inuyasha!" Miroku yelled. The _hanyou_ and the _miko_ both turned to him in surprise.

"Lady Kagome, what does your heart say, is that we way we should go?"

"Um…um, yes? Yes, we go northeast after the shard."

"Very well," said the Houshi, and then he put two fingers to his mouth and shrilled out a piercing whistle.

Inuyasha cringed, his ears flattened in pain. "Miroku, A little warning before ya do that please."

"Oh sorry," the monk shrugged unrepentantly. "Lady Kagome, do you have everything we need, or do we need to head back to the village?"

"Yeah, I filled my pack before we left."

"Very well, Sango and Shippo were to listen for and then head towards my signal, so let's head out, they will undoubtedly catch up with us on the way."

"'Bout time!"

"Inuyasha, if it wouldn't delay us any more, I would so 'S' word you into tomorrow!"

And so the strange trio took off running northeast. Miroku stopped periodically to let off one of his loud whistles.

Soon they were joined by a strange giant seagull wearing a bow and a taijiya riding a giant cat.

9


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Inuyasha characters or stories. Except any OC I might come up with.

Hearts Ease

Chapter 4

Rest Stop

For hours, the _inu-tachi_ had headed northeast straight across country following the vague _kehai_ tug of a shikon jewel shard. Finally, when the sun was more than an hour past noon Sango requested Kirara to swoop down to land in front of Inuyasha. "It's time for a break" the _taijiya_ called. Inuyasha skidded to a stop and began shouting. "What do you mean; it's time for a break? We've still got hours before the sun goes down, and a shard and two kids to find!"

Kagome knocked him hard on his shoulder. "_Baka_! Look at them!"

"Aw shit! All right then, Kagome get down!"

"Gladly you twit!"

Once Inuyasha had taken a good look at his friends, he could see how exhausted they were. Neither Sango nor Miroku had totally recovered from the wounds they had received from their last battle. The dark circles under Miroku's eyes looked even darker in contrast to his chalk white face and from the smell of blood; at least one of Sango's cuts had reopened. Even Kirara trembled a little as she transformed back into her kitten form.

'Fuck!' He snarled to himself, 'we're never gonna get anywhere like this. Stupid weak _ningen_.' As he leapt away to find a tree to perch in, he could feel Kagome's hot gaze, boring into his back.

He found a tall tree with an open view to the northeast, and settled himself on the highest branch, his eyes turned in the direction of the receding shard.

"Stupid Inuyasha" Shippo griped. "I'm hungry!"

"I know Shippo," Kagome soothed him as she rummaged through her huge yellow pack. "Ah here we are!" And she pulled out plastic baggies of trail mix and jerky to pass around. "We've still got plenty of water, but I'll need you to get more at our next stop, Shippo."

Shippo nodded his mouth full of jerky.

The young _miko_ smiled as she passed Miroku a plastic bottle of water and a vial of Jinenji's poison remedy. Miroku nodded in thanks even as he grimaced at the memory of the potion's bitter taste.

After the foursome had eaten their fill of the dry meal: Sango and Kagome went behind a screen of trees so that Kagome could inspect and replace Sango's stitches outside of the lust-full gaze of the _hentai_ monk. Although when Kagome looked back, it looked as though Miroku was instead lying back to take a nap. 'Hmnp, it doesn't matter, we still can't trust the lecherous _hentai_!' Then she caught a look of the slashes on Sango's side. "_Kami_! Sango, why didn't you tell me how bad these are?"

Two of the formerly sutured claw slashes had been torn open allowing the_ taijiya's_ blood to pour down her side. Only the black color of her slayer's uniform had kept Kagome from previously seeing the stains.

"Just… Just let it go Kagome." Sango murmured her head hanging. "We all needed to eat, and if I waited till afterwards, I wouldn't have had any appetite from the pain."

"I'm sorry Sango; I just worry about you and Miroku not getting enough time to heal."

Thirty minutes later, with Kagome's supply of medical supplies severely depleted: Kagome tracked down the tree Inuyasha had claimed. "Inuyasha," she softly call, "Do you want to eat something?"

"Keh!" Was his only reply.

"Inuyasha, the _kehai_ that I felt has changed direction. It's turned back this way at an angle, almost straight south. If you head east, you might be able to intercept it."

The Hanyou hit the ground only inches in front of her. "Wench!" He shouted into her face. "Why didn't ya tell me sooner?"

Kagome didn't even flinch as she shouted back into his face. "Because you _baka_ I wasn't sure about it until now! The damned thing was just swerving around for awhile before it took off again!"

"Hah! Well you shoulda told me when it was 'swervin' I coulda caught up with it then!"

"Never mind that now! Just go, take Shippo, I'm staying here with Sango and Miroku!"

"The fuck you are! You're comin' with me!"

Kagome's face reddened when the hanyou grabbed her arm and shook her. "No!" She shouted back, "Let go of me! Just two hours Inuyasha, that's all that I ask. Sango and Miroku need the rest and they need me! Send Shippo back if you need us!"

"Damn it Kagome, what if it changes its course again?"

"I'm sorry Inuyasha, but I've got to stay. I'll send Kirara if I sense a change."

"Keh, whatever, I don't know why I ever let you _ningen_ hang around me in the first place? Kirara and the runt are the only ones worth anything around here! You three might as well be an anchor around my neck!"

"I'm sorry you feel that way Inuyasha, but… but that's just the way it has to be."

Back in the clearing the rest of the _Inu-tachi_ listened to the argument that rang through the trees. Miroku and Sango met each other's eyes and shook their heads. Shippo sat on the ground, his arms crossed, pouting. "Stupid Inuyasha I don't want to go with him anyway." Then there was a flash of red and silver and Shippo was gone.

Moments later Kagome appeared through the trees with a cheerful smile plastered on her face. But the smile was belied by the slight redness around her eyes. "Well guys, we've got a couple of hours to kill, you better get some rest while you can." She trudged over and flopped herself down next to Sango. Then she perked up and began rummaging through her pack, "Ah ha," she cried out in triumph, "I thought I had packed these things!" And she presented them both with a shiny silver space blanket.

"Thank you Lady Kagome, but what is it?" Miroku asked, turning the small square around in his hands.

"Yes, it is beautiful." Sango said wistfully admiring the shiny mirror-like surface.

"Oh, sorry!" Kagome exclaimed. She took back the silver square from Miroku and demonstrated how to unfold it. Fascinated they watched as the tiny square unfolded to become a large enough blanket to cover a person from head to toe. "I found this great camping supply store last time I was home. I don't know why I never thought of these things before. Lay the shiny side towards you and it will keep you warm."

"But what is it made of?" Asked Sango, as she laid out her own silver blanket.

"Um, actually, I'm not sure. I think its plastic and aluminum."

"Kagome-chan, you do know that, that doesn't explain anything?"

"Yeah, sorry Sango."

Kagome watched over her sleeping friends, as her hands fidgeted nervously. She felt so torn. She should be with Inuyasha helping to track down both the jewel shard and the missing children. As Inuyasha constantly reminded her, it was her fault the jewel had been shattered in the first place and again he also blamed her for the second shattering when Naraku died. "But that time, that time it wasn't my fault," she muttered softly. 'I should build a fire," she thought shivering in a sudden cold gust of wind. As she rolled to her feet a silver locket slid out from under her blouse. Unconsciously her hand went to cup the golf ball sized locket she now wore around her neck in place of the tiny glass vial she had once used to carry the shards in. A locket that had been a gift from the least likely person she could ever imagine. 'It was cold that day too,' she thought remembering that late winter day more than seven months ago. Just a few months after Inuyasha and his brother had escaped out of the _meidou_.

--+--

'_This is just typical' thought the teen, from her precarious perch on the back of the hard-headed _Hanyou_, as she tried to keep her hands over her painfully cold ears. 'I think I've got frost bite, in fact I'm sure I've got frost bite and this _baka_ won't stop. They were running through a forest of huge trees that would have been some protection against the wind, if only Inuyasha would just stop! "Inuyasha" she whined as sweetly as she could, "can we please stop my ears are going to fall off?"_

_She could see his ears flicking back towards her, but he made no reply. 'Why that skunk, he's ignoring me.'_

"_Inuyasha." He still didn't reply. "Inuyasha, if you don't stop this instant I'm going to start screaming as loud and as high as I can. __**And it's going to be right into your ears!"**_

_The _hanyou's_ ears went down as he slid to a stop and dumped her unceremoniously to the ground. "Alright alright, don't be such a bitch."_

"_Hey!" shrilled the _Miko_, from her position half buried in a half-melted snow-bank. "If anyone around here is being a bitch it's you!"_

"_Keh! Stupid wench, boys can't be bitches!"_

"_No? Really? But someone here sure can act like one."_

"_Huh?"_

_At that intelligent reply, Kagome burst out in her usual cheerful laughter. "If you hadn't dumped me into a soft pile of snow I would so be 'itting' you to the other side of the earth, but now you've made me wet and we're really going to have to stop!" _

"_Hey! No way." _

"_Do you want me to die Inuyasha? Because you know humans do, when they get cold and wet."_

"_Tch! Well don't threaten my ears next time!"_

_Inuyasha stepped forward reached out his hand and tugged the girl to her feet. His ears went down in apology when he finally noticed her convulsive shivering. Shyly he stepped closer and wrapped his arms around her to share his body heat._

_Kagome relaxed into his shared warmth, huddling as close as she could into his chest. 'Ah,' she thought dreamily, leaning even closer smelling his wonderful scent of forests and greenery, with just a hint of wet dog. 'This is almost worth the snow-bank.' Then she was brusquely dumped back on her ass, as Kirara, loaded with the rest of the _Inu-tachi _landed close by._

"_Damn it, dog-boy that hurt!"_

_He just folded his arms and turned away, nose in the air. But his ears were still down in an embarrassed apology._

"_Are we finally stopping?" Miroku called out cheerfully. His eyebrows seemed to bounce suggestively as his eyes leapt from one blushing face to another._

"Bouzo_, if you don't get that look offa yer face right now!" Inuyasha yelled. "I'm gonna… I'm gonna make you __**eat**__ those eyebrows!"_

"_Why Inuyasha-san no need to be so hasty." Miroku smarmed, backing away, his hands rose waving defensively. "No harm done, no harm done at all."_

"_Keh!"_

_As Sango passed by him, she nonchalantly put her elbow into his solar plexus, folding him over and bringing him to his knees, and Shippo remarked. _"Kami_, Miroku, I can't leave you alone for a second!"_

"_If we're stopping, there's a clearing just a little ways ahead." Sango said smirking over her shoulder. "Maybe ten, fifteen minutes on foot."_

_Then she noticed the shivering girl still sitting on the wet ground arms wrapped around her self. "Inuyasha! Did you do this?" _

"_Huh? Do what?"_

"_You great _baka_! Did you dump Kagome into wet snow?" She shouted grabbing hold of one of his madly flicking ears._

"_Yeah, so what if I did! And hey watch the ears!"_

"_Oh Kagome, can you make it just a little longer?" She unzipped Kagome's back-pack still on her back and rummaged for a blanket. "Here!" She helped Kagome to her feet and wrapped the blanket around her. Scowling at the _baka hanyou_ the entire time. _

"_Well, Inuyasha, if you want a sick jewel-shard detector, maybe even a dead jewel-shard detector, you just found the best way of accomplishing that task!"_

"_Huh?"_

"_She's going to get sick Inuyasha." Miroku explained pushing him aside and coming forward with his arms open. "Here, I'll warm her up. Uh, Heh heh." He backed off from Sango's glare. "Now Sango, totally innocent I assure you."_

"_Kagome's sick? You made Kagome sick Inuyasha!" Shippo screamed, leaping for the _hanyou's_ head. "I'm gonna kill you!"_

_Inuyasha caught the little _kitsune_ mid trajectory, and dangled the kit in front of his face by the boy's tail. "So you're gonna kill me huh?" he taunted, "you and what army?"_

"_Put him down!" Kagome hissed through clenched teeth._

"_Why should I?" The _hanyou_ laughed. And then at the tense silence behind him, he apprehensively turned his head and then cowered at the sight of one magnificently pissed off miko. He only had time for one small whimper before... _

"_Sit, sit, __**sit!"**_

"_Ow!"_

"_Let's go Kagome-chan; we'll just leave these poor fools here." Sango pulled Kagome's blanket closer around her and led her off, Kirara sauntered after them. _

_Shippo started to scurry after them, but turned back around to stand at the top of the stricken Hanyou's head. The moment Inuyasha was released from the spell and raised his head from the wet forest mast, he was met by a sloppy wet snowball and Shippo sped off laughing._

"_Shippo, just wait till I catch you!"_

_He ran at half speed, he didn't want to seem too anxious, and then he saw the rest of his group, stopped at the tree-line, staring. 'What the hell?' and then he saw a glorious sight. _

"_Oh great it's my asshole half-brother!"_

_There perched on a huge flat rock in the middle of a flower-filled clearing, basking in the late afternoon sun was his half-brother's _tachi_. Rin complete with a lap full of snow drops and crocuses was quietly decorating a snoring Jaken who was sprawled out next to her, his staff lying discarded to the side. Kohaku it seemed, had just risen to his feet, to confront the intruders, his blade was gleaming gold. And Sesshomaru? He was reclining against the side of the great boulder, his head thrown back, eyes closed, exposing his long white column of throat to the warm golden rays of the sun. His hair was pulled over his shoulder, glittering. It was magnificent. The scene couldn't have been more beautiful if it had been deliberately posed._

_Inuyasha wanted to puke. "Wha?" The _Hanyou's_ eyes bounced back and forth between his companions as matching moans came unconsciously from their throats. Even Miroku seemed to give out a little groan. They all seemed so mesmerized he wanted to wave his hand in front of their eyes. 'Fuck! Sango hasn't even noticed Kohaku's there.' He grabbed Kagome's shoulder and shook her. "Snap out of it wench, what's wrong with you guys? It's just my bastard of a half-brother!"_

_Kagome started, "Oh hi Inuyasha, are you here too?" She said dreamily._

"_Kagome!" He shook her harder._

"_Oh, oh! Hi Rin, Kohaku, greetings Lord Sesshomaru. Um, may we join you please?" She called softly._

_It almost seemed as if the Tai youkai gave a slight nod of greeting. "Kohaku, you may stand down" he said without opening his eyes or raising his voice above a whisper._

"_Kohaku!" Sango gladly exclaimed and ran to greet him, she leapt up onto the boulder without stopping and grabbed him._

"Ani-ue_!" He blushed when Sango wrapped her arms around him._

"_You look well," she whispered in his ear._

_He nodded his head in reply. "And you sister? You are well?"_

"_Yes Kohaku, even better now that I can see you again."_

_He smiled. And she buried her face in his shoulder and hugged him hard._

"_I love you," she whispered. _

"**Ani-ue!"**

_Then she sat back on her heels and grinned. "Come on, tell me everything that's happened since I saw you last."_

_Shippo bounced his way up onto the rock as Rin jumped up to meet him, scattering blooms everywhere. "Shippo!" She squealed and grabbed him in a huge hug._

"_Hey Rin!" He squealed back. "Ya wanna see my new toys?"_

_Kagome walked into the sunny clearing smiling at all the happy reunions. She still shivered under the cover of her blanket but the warm sun was helping. _

_Miroku noticed the shiver and slipped off. "I'm going to find some dry wood Inuyasha."_

"_Keh, fine, whatever!" Inuyasha crossed his arms and casually sauntered into the clearing, no matter that he and his brother (half-brother! His mind corrected) hadn't fought for a while, he was still wary of being near him and in fact it seemed that just being near the seemingly perfect _youkai_ just put his temper even more on edge than usual. 'Huh, I just hate the bastard that's all!' "Oi, Sesshomaru I gotta bone to pick with you!" It didn't help his temper that all Sesshomaru did was open one eye halfway, eye him with a slightly pained look and then languidly slide it back shut again. 'Hey! No one ignores me!' Was his first thought, 'but then again,' he thought 'that was probably the friendliest look that bastard has ever given me.'_

_He plopped himself down against the rock several arm lengths from his brother. (Half-brother! He mentally slapped him self.) With more patience than he ever thought he could possess, he waited for his brother to acknowledge him. (Half-brother!) __**'shut-up!' **__he mentally shouted at him self and banged the back of his head against the rock in frustration._

_And then he noticed, Sesshomaru had opened his eyes and was looking at him. 'He's laughing at me, the bastards laughing at me, I know he is.' "Uh, well, Sesshomaru, what I wanna know is, when we were coming out of the _meidou_, did you actually kick me?"_

"_Indeed, little brother, well as usual, you were too slow."_

"_Keh! Well I was __**slightly**__ wounded, you know."_

"_Sometimes we all need a bit of amusement, Inuyasha."_

"_Asshole!"_

"_Inuyasha, if you use such language in front of the children again I will personally tear out that filthy organ that you call a tongue, drag it through the middens and privies of a hundred villages and __**stuff it back in your mouth**__!" _

_Shocked, Inuyasha found that his hands had defensively found themselves cupped around his mouth. He had just begun to bristle when Sesshomaru's head suddenly slid around towards the forest in a serpentine motion that made Inuyasha shudder._

"_Jaken!" The Tai youkai shouted, startling everyone. But Jaken snored on. "Jaken!"_

_Jaken started up with a loud snort. "Yes! Yes milord?"_

"_It is time. You know what to do."_

"_Yes milord."_

_And then Sesshomaru stood up with his usual grace and stalked off._

"_Oi Sesshomaru! Where are you going?" Inuyasha shouted after him and then frustrated as the _Tai youkai_ as usual ignored him leapt to his feet and began to storm after him. Only to find a very small _kappa youkai_ wrapped around his legs._

"_No Lord Inuyasha, you cannot! Where he goes, no one can follow, not even me!"_

_Stunned by the _kappa's_ sincerity, the _hanyou_ allowed the small demon to stop him._

"_What do you mean I can't follow him? I can go anywhere that asshole can!"_

"_No, not this time. My lord has already traveled beyond our reach."_

_Inuyasha grabbed Jaken by the back of his robes and held him up to his face. "What do ya mean?" He glared._

_Jaken cringed. "I cannot explain, because I do not understand it my self Lord Inuyasha."_

"_It's true Lord Inuyasha," came Kohaku's voice. It was only then that the _hanyou_ realized that all of the others were grouped around him. "He's done this several times and Jaken has always had to stay behind."_

"_Huh, well I don't like it."_

_What's wrong Inuyasha?" Kagome asked._

"_I don't know, something's off and I don't know what." 'There was,' he thought, 'there was something off, did he move more slowly or more stiffly, what?' he just couldn't put his finger on it. Then he suddenly realized "He was concealing his scent. Why? Hey toad, is there something wrong with my brother?"_

_Jaken's eyes slid from one side to another. "Why no, there is nothing wrong with my master, my master is perfect!"_

"_Tell me!"_

_Jaken looked down. "I don't know, he won't tell me. But he won't sleep and he hardly ever eats any more."_

"_How long, Jaken?"_

"_Months."_

"_Months," Inuyasha said slowly and dropped the _Kappa_ to the ground._

_He sniffed as best as he could along his brother's trail, 'man he's good, 'there's nothing to follow. Wait what's that?" The slightest scent of decay slid in and out of his nostrils. "That can't be right?" He said out loud, straightening from his crouch._

"_What is it?" Asked Kagome kneeling by his side._

_He shook his head at her, "nothing."_

"_He'll be all right Inuyasha, he's very strong."_

"_Keh! Like I care?"_

"_I know Inuyasha. Miroku's got a fire going, come on, I'll make ramen."_

"_All right, all right already, don't nag wench!"_

"_Come on." And she dragged him to the fire, all the others following._

"_Oh and don't call me Lord anymore! That's my half-brother not me!"_

_--+--_

_Flash-back continues in next chapter_

12


	5. Chapter 5

Warning: Contains major spoilers from manga chapters 466-471.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Inuyasha characters or stories. Except any OC I might come up with.

A/N: My apologies for how long it took for me to update, I promise I will do better. And Please let me know if I need to post translations of Japanese terms.

Hearts Ease

Chapter 5

Kohaku Tells A Story

_Kagome shivered as she pulled dry jeans and a sweater over damp goose-bumped skin. She still hadn't warmed up from the wet snow-bank she had been dumped into earlier. 'Man, that Inuyasha,' she thought, 'if I get sick from this. I'm going to sit him into next year. And worst for him, my Mom won't let me come back here until the weather is warmer.' She sighed just thinking about her nice warm bed back home. 'Well I'm stuck here now, I have to make the best of it.' So she put on her most cheerful smile and joined the rest of her friends around the fire. _

_Miroku had built it next to the huge boulder, where the sun had warmed it and the rock still felt lovely and warm against her back as she relaxed next to Sango, who was still chattering happily with a silent Kohaku as he stroked a purring Kirara. Shippo and Rin were playing with one of his toy tops and Inuyasha, as usual, was impatiently watching the boiling water, 'no, wait,' she thought as she noticed his eyes flick from the pot of water to Jaken where he also sat against the rock, his eyes fixed on the forest where Sesshomaru had disappeared. 'Huh, I don't think I've ever seen him not give his total attention to ramen.'_

"_Miroku, are the vegetables cooked yet?" She asked._

_The monk stirred the boiling broth of chopped carrots, cabbage and bits of chicken meat left over from lunch; and then fished a carrot out with his chopsticks and bit into it. "Indeed they are, Lady Kagome." He affirmed._

"_Great," she replied and then opened and crushed four packets of ramen noodles into the water and then opened the little silver chicken-flavor packs. "Well this will only take a few more minutes." _

_Three minutes later she was dipping the noodle soup into the light plastic bowls she had brought from her own time. Her own serving and Sango's she put in mugs, so that there would be enough bowls to go around. "Here Rin, Kohaku, try this. It's a dish from my own village." She chirped as she handed out servings and chopsticks. "Be careful it's still hot."_

"_Thank you, Lady Kagome." Rin chirped back, staring into the bowl, fascinated._

"_Just Kagome please, Rin-_chan_. And you are very welcome. Ah Master Jaken, would you like a mug of ramen soup?"_

_Jaken turned his nose up with a "humph," but Kagome had seen his eyes watch avidly as she handed out the bowls, so she placed a full mug next to him and turned to her own meal. Moments later the mug had disappeared and she suppressed a smile._

_And then she realized that Inuyasha had not thrown his usual hissy fit over her giving away 'his' ramen. She glanced at him, to find that though his hand was shoveling noodles into his mouth at the usual pace, his eyes were glued to the little green _youkai_. "Inuyasha, are you ready for a refill?"_

"_Um yeah," he said absentmindedly, handing her his bowl. And then he folded his arms across his chest with a stern look at the _Kappa_, who returned his look with an uneasy shift of his body. "So toad, what did you mean that my half-brother has traveled beyond our reach?" Then, as he reached out his hand to receive his now full bowl of soup, he said, "Shit, I can go any where that asshole can go."_

"_Inuyasha!" Kagome, shouted, "Watch your language!"_

"_Keh! Make me!"_

_Small noises of despair came from the rest of the _Inu-tachi_. "Now he's done it," moaned Shippo, as he rolled his eyes._

"_Inuyasha, put down your bowl, I don't want to waste good food," Kagome said very evenly._

_Inuyasha cringed and pulled his bowl to his chest protectively. "No way!"_

"_Put it down or lose it."_

_Reluctantly Inuyasha handed off his bowl to Miroku with a, "Don't let the Runt get it." Then he waited, ears plastered to his head, in resignation._

_Rin and Kohaku watched the scene in enthrallment as Kagome took a deep breath, and shouted "Inuyasha, SIT, SIT, SIT!" Miroku's hand made a quick rub on Sango's lovely butt cheek and Shippo made a dive over Miroku's lap trying for Inuyasha's unguarded bowl, but with the ease of long practice the monk kept it out of his reach even as Sango's fist hit the back of his head._

_Jaken shook his head in horror, '_ningen_ and _hanyou_, why did my master abandon me with these insane _bakas_?'_

_After a pause in which Kagome had refilled everyone's bowls and Inuyasha had dragged himself out of his hole and retrieved his own bowl back from a grinning Miroku, Inuyasha turned his attention back to a certain green _kappa_. "Well toad, are you going to answer my question?"_

"_I am not a toad! My name is Jaken!" The _kappa_ screeched. "And my Master's business is his own! I will not answer the questions of a filthy _hanyou_!"_

_In the back ground Kagome heard Rin remark to Shippo, "Master Jaken eats bugs." This and the sound of the whole group bursting into laughter sent the tiny _youkai_ into hysterics. "Rin! I do not eat bugs!" He shrieked. "I am not a toad and you should give me the respect I deserve!"_

"_But Master Jaken, I do give you the respect that you deserve. And you do too eat bugs!"_

_Jaken's beak gaped in horror. "You awful horrid girl, I… Gurk!" He was cut off as Inuyasha grabbed him by the back of his _haori_ only to dangle him in front of his angry face._

"_I don't care what you are or who you are! What the fuck is up with my brother?"_

"_Inuyasha SIT!" Kagome screamed._

"_I don't know! You mad beast! Jaken shouted into the _hanyou's_ face as they both hit the ground._

"_Ooh," Jaken moaned, dragging himself up into a sitting position. "I don't know," He bemoaned. "It started after he followed the children into Hell to strengthen his sword." He ignored the exclamations around him and continued his story. "When he returned, he had changed somehow, he no longer needed the Staff of Two Heads to travel between the worlds and he told me that where he went was too dangerous, so he started leaving me behind. As a babysitter! I, Jaken who had followed him everywhere made into a glorified babysitter!" _

_Inuyasha snorted in disgust as tears poured down from the _youkai's_ bulging yellow eyes. _

"_Uh, what do you mean, followed the children into Hell?" Sango interrupted._

"_You said we weren't to talk about that, Master Jaken!" Kohaku exclaimed._

"_Especially to the _Bakahanyou_, you said," Rin chimed in._

"_Um," Jaken's eyes seemed to spin in his head in confusion, "well um what I meant to say was…" Then Inuyasha's fist met his head and he was out._

"_Kohaku, Hell?" Sango, asked again._

"_Um, really I don't think we should talk about it." Kohaku said uncertainly._

"_Please Kohaku," Rin begged, "I want to hear about it again."_

"_But weren't you there Rin-_chan_?" Kagome asked._

_Rin grinned and tilted her head. "_Hai_, but I was dead. Wasn't I Kohaku?" And then she burst into cheerful laughter at the astounded looks._

_All eyes were on Kohaku, whose cheeks burned an embarrassed red as he nodded._

"_Now I've really got to hear this!" Kagome exclaimed, thinking, not for the first time, that Rin was a very odd girl,_

"_Yeah brat," Inuyasha stated, "I want to hear about Sesshomaru in Hell. Keh, too bad he didn't stay there." _

_Kohaku's eyes moved around the group, meeting each person's eyes and then he sighed and looked at the ground. The sun had finally sat and the moon had not yet risen. The only light was from the guttering fire; he reached for a small log and pushed it into the coals._

"_Um well, it was the day after Lady Kikyo died, (I'm very sorry, Lord Inuyasha.) I had been with Rin and Lord Sesshomaru for only a few days." The young _taijiya_ shuddered, "He had just saved me from Byakuya and Naraku's _shouki_ poisoned snakes." He paused for a moment when Sango gasped, and nodded. "Rin told me that they had been wandering around in that area for several days, as though the Lord was searching for something. And then there was this huge white dog, it just appeared in the sky."_

"_Lord Sesshomaru turned into a big puppy!" Rin squealed._

"_Yes, he leaped into the sky and transformed into his true form," Kohaku confirmed. "He and the other dog ran together for a few moments and then both transformed to youki and came down to the ground. The other dog was a woman; she was Lord Sesshomaru's mother."_

_He paused again while the three human's gasped._

"_Sesshomaru's mother is alive?" Kagome exclaimed, "But Lady Izayoi? Your father? I thought _Inu yokai_ mated for life?"_

"_Keh! Goes to show what you know," Inuyasha grumped._

"_She was really pretty!" Rin chimed in._

"_But? Oh, well I'm sorry Kohaku," The young Miko said, "we can get into this later, please finish the story."_

_Kohaku nodded and continued. "We flew to her _shiro_; I have never seen a more beautiful structure. It was of both wood and stone and rested on a cloud. She had an army standing guard of both yokai and humans." Kohaku smiled, "and then she sat on her throne and asked Lord Sesshomaru why he hadn't been by to see her? Just like any other mother I've known._

_Rin giggled and said, "She asked Lord Sesshomaru if he was going to eat us?"_

"_Ha!" The _hanyou_ barked, "And what did he say to that?"_

"_He said 'ridiculous'." Kohaku smiled again, making his voice as deep as he could on the 'ridiculous'. "But I have to admit that for a moment there, I was afraid that he was going to say yes."_

"_Oh Kohaku you didn't?" Rin cried. "Lord Sesshomaru doesn't eat people!"_

"_But Rin, I didn't know him then. And many _youkai_ do," Kohaku defended himself._

"_Well I wouldn't put it past him!" muttered Inuyasha._

"_What happened next?" Sango asked._

"_He asked his mother about his sword. She said that his… your father had told her that he might come to her and she had this necklace with a pendant, she called it the '_meidou-seki'_. It was about this big," and he indicated its size with his hands. "Anyway, she said that she could help but that if she did he would be faced with 'great danger and he must not feel fear or sadness.' She didn't tell him that we would be involved." He made a gesture indicating himself and Rin. "Then she said 'shall we have some fun?' and conjured up this huge ugly black dog through the pendant."_

"_Bet it wasn't as ugly as Sesshomaru," The _hanyou_ muttered._

"_Inuyasha, hush!" Kagome exclaimed._

"_Lord Sesshomaru tried to hit it with the meidou zangetzouha, but it had no effect. The lady said the sword wouldn't have any effect on it because the dog was a hell hound, and then the dog swooped down and scooped up Rin and I and it flew through the meidou the Lord had made, and we were in Hell. I didn't see of course, but he followed after us"_

"_He said he was going after, in order to kill the dog!" Grumphed a sulking Jaken, who had finally woken up."It happened too fast, he left me behind!"_

"_Master Jaken, you really would have followed Lord Sesshomaru into Hell?" Miroku asked._

"_Of course," Jaken replied pulling himself up proudly, "I have always followed my Lord, everywhere he goes."_

_Kagome stifled a giggle, poor Jaken still had a snowdrop dangling from his tall hat and it totally undermined the dignified image he was trying to portray._

"_Keh! At least he's braver than Myoga," muttered their _hanyou _peanut gallery._

"_I resent that," hollered a small voice from Inuyasha's shoulder._

"_Myoga, haven't seen you for a while." Kagome smiled._

_Myoga bowed his head, "_Konnichiwa_, Lady Kagome, Lady Sango, Miroku-_San, Kirara, Shippo-chan_ and Lord Inuyasha." And then he took in the two children and the _kappa_. "Um, am I interrupting something here?"_

"_Yeah, so shut up!" Inuyasha said squishing the poor flea _youkai_. "Just ignore him, and go on kid."_

_And so Kohaku went on with his story; the breaking of the road into Hell and the killing of the hell hound with the healing Tenseiga, the attack of the birds of bone and how the head of the hell hound became many heads lifting out of the abyss on slimy tentacles. Kohaku shuddered and made a face,"_Ane-ue_ the damn things smelled just like Naraku!" _

_Sango opened her mouth to admonish him over his language, but then just shook her head._

_He told them how Sesshomaru had shouted at him to take Rin and run, and how he had been too slow, so that the Lord had to scoop them up and rescue them and how the Lord had shouted at him not to waste his time because his arm was meant 'only for holding a sword.'_

_He paused for a moment for an interjection from the hanyou, but Inuyasha just looked at him and said "what?"_

"_The road began to crumble behind us and we could only go forward. That's when I noticed that Rin had stopped breathing." Everyone looked at the girl and she grinned back._

"_But what happened?" Asked Kagome, "Did Sesshomaru use Tenseiga?"_

"_He tried, but the sword wouldn't work. He was so upset and angry. And then the darkness came down on us and Rin's body disappeared. It seems that the Lord of Hell had come himself to take her. So Lord Sesshomaru stepped into the darkness to follow and his mother opened up a gate before us so that we could return. But he refused to go. He ordered me to take that road, while he took another road that branched off to the side. But I couldn't, I couldn't go, I couldn't leave them. And so I followed him. It smelled so bad, _ane-ue_, of battlefields and rotting flesh. And then we saw __**him**__, a huge black rotting giant carrying Rin in his hand, toward a mountain of rotting corpses._

"_Lord Sesshomaru flew up and cut his arm off and then caught Rin as she fell." Kohaku paused for a long moment._

"_So what happened, Kohaku, didn't Rin come back to life then?" Asked Miroku._

_Kohaku took a long shuddering breath. "No, we waited for a long time, and then I knew, I knew she was gone when he dropped Tenseiga." _

"_What?! I don't believe it!" Shouted Myoga, "He would never drop his sword!"_

"_But he did, _Ojiisan_. He dropped it and the look on his face." Kohaku shook his head. "I heard him say 'I would give up anything in exchange for Rin's life.' And then Tenseiga started to glow."_

"_Did it bring her back then?" Kagome squealed._

"_No, but it seemed that the sword was calling out to the dead. They were crawling towards it, reaching out and trying to grasp it. And then He knelt and lifted up Tenseiga."_

"_Well go on," urged Miroku, "what happened?"_

"_He…he purified them, all of the dead in Hell, he purified them and they transformed into pure light and just floated away. It looked like the light I saw the night Lady Kikyo died."_

_Miroku gasped. "Impossible!"_

"_Wow!" Was Kagome's and Sango's contribution._

"_Fuck'n Hell! I don't believe it!" Shouted the _hanyou

"_Inuyasha, SIT!" Shouted the _miko _in reply._

_Kohaku didn't bother to answer, but his eyes spoke volumes. Sango put her hand on his shoulder, and then pulled him into an embrace. Kirara jumped from her shoulder, unto his, purring and rubbing against his neck. "Can you go on Kohaku? Can you tell us what happened next?"_

_Kohaku pulled away with a sigh, "that last pulse of the sword opened up a huge _meidou; _it was now almost a full circle. We simply walked straight through it and there we were, back at the Lady's _shiro_. Lord Sesshomaru laid Rin down on the Lady's throne. Master Jaken and I just looked at her and cried." His hand found the nekomata's fur and he pulled her into his lap. _

"_I did not cry," squawked Jaken._

_Kohaku smiled fondly at the little _youkai_ and then winked at a smiling Rin. "Of course you didn't Master Jaken, and when the Lady asked if you were crying, you didn't tell her you were crying because your Lord could not."_

_Jaken turned his nose away with a humph._

"_Come on Kohaku, please what happened" Kagome cried._

"_Well, Lord Sesshomaru confronted his mother, he said 'You knew this would happen to Rin.' And she told him that he wasn't a _Kami_, that Tenseiga could only bring the dead back once, and that in order to master Tenseiga, he had to kill with a compassionate heart. To do this he had to know loss and the fear of loss. And then she smiled, how he didn't kill her in that moment I don't know, but I was sure tempted." He shrugged and smiled himself. "It's a good thing that we did not, because she took the _Meidou Seki_ from around her neck and laid it around Rin's. There was a flash of light, that she said was Rin's soul returning from Hell, and then Rin began coughing." He grinned hugely. "I was so happy, and milord he just knelt next to Rin with his hand on her hair, and told her she was alright. Master Jaken was crying with joy."_

"_I did not cry, you awful brat!"_

"_Keh!" Said the _hanyou,_ "thinks he's a _Kami_ alright!"_

_And then Kagome and Sango looked at each other and then at Kohaku and squealed; "So Kohaku, what did Lord Sesshomaru's mother look like?" "What was she wearing?" "What did her _shiro_ look like?" "Did you catch her name?"_

_Miroku gestured at Inuyasha and the two of them wandered away from the campfire. Inuyasha crossed his arms with an obstinate look. "Look _Houshi_, I know what you're going to say, and I say he's still an evil bastard and I am not going to ask him to join us._

_Miroku closed his eyes and resisted the urge to reach out and shake sense into the stubborn hanyou. "You heard the story, Inuyasha; he purified the dead in Hell! If we could get that power working with us…To purify Naraku!_

"_There's somethin' you're forgetting Miroku, Sesshomaru don't have the _meidouzangetzouha_ anymore, Tessaiga has it now." And he laid a possessive hand on the sword's hilt. "He gave it to me, and I ain't giv'n it back. Kagome can purify that stink'n bastard's ass to Hell, soon as we figure out how to unbind her power. I don't want anything to do with my asshole brother… half-brother!" He shouted the last words into the Monk's face._

_The Monk waved his hands in the air in a conciliatory manner, "alright Inuyasha, but please, promise you will at least think about it."_

_Inuyasha waved his hands back disgustedly, "alright, alright, but quit nagging, we ain't married, so I don't have to take it from you."_

"_Very well." Then he grinned, "Let's get back, I want to hear just how beautiful Lord _

_Sesshomaru's mother is."_

"_I can tell you _Hoshi_, she looks just like him, just less girly."_

_Miroku laughed, "Are you implying that your brother looks like a girl, Inuyasha?"_

"_Keh! Hell yes, you've seen him haven't you?"_

_And they laughed all the way back to the fire._

_--+--___

_It was later in the evening, when Kagome found Shippo sitting on a rock far away from the fire. "You are very quiet this evening Shippo, is something wrong?"_

_He shifted uneasily on his perch and sighed. "It's just about Hell, Kagome; I can't stop thinking about Mama and Papa, what if they are there? What if they are in that horrible place and they can't get out!?" Then he burst into tears._

"_Shippo, you know I saw Hell don't you?" She waited for him to nod. "I saw Hell and I saw the kind of people that were there. And I can tell you Shippo that those kind of people could never have raised a wonderful kit like you! I guarantee you that your Mama and Papa are up in Heaven right now looking down and they are so proud of their little son!"_

"_But Kagome," he wailed, "the priests say that _youkai_ don't have souls, that we can't go to heaven!"_

"_Oh Shippo, of course you have a soul, you have a heart and a conscience, you know right from wrong. You have a mind that chooses, and a most wonderful, terrible sense of humor. None of that is possible without a soul. Why here in Japan everything has a soul, the trees, the rivers and the mountains. All the animals too, after all isn't that ultimately what _youkai_ are?" And then she put her finger on his nose. "You are the embodiment of all the foxes that have ever lived, and don't you forget it!_

"_Now come on, my great and terrible fox, let's go see if there's some water near here!"_

_Kagome swung the kit up into her arms and carried him back to the fire._

"_Oi Kagome, are you spoil'n that brat again?" Inuyasha bellowed._

"_No dog boy, we're just getting ready to look for some water."_

"_Ha, in the dark? I don't think so."_

_She unclipped her flashlight from her belt. "Ha! See not in the dark! Hey Kohaku-kun, is there any clean water around here?"_

_Kohaku jumped up. "Hai, right over there, I will lead you."_

_Kagome grinned; come on Shippo-_chan_, Rin-_chan_, Kohaku-_kun_ is going to lead us to the water." And she hung two water bottles connected with cord around each child's neck. She herself lugged the soup pot with the dirty dishes inside._

_She almost stopped when she saw that Kohaku was leading them in the same direction that Sesshomaru had gone. But under the stare of three children and a belligerent _Hanyou_, she shrugged it off and followed the young _taijiya_ down hill through a heavy stand of trees to a substantial river, Kirara scampering along beside them. A bit of cheesecloth over the neck of each bottle as a filter and a purification pill in each one and they were ready to return. The rinsed bowls packed back into a pot full of water, she would heat over the fire for a good wash. _

"_OK Kohaku, time to lead us back!" Here Kagome ran into a problem, she couldn't carry the heavy pot of water and aim the flashlight at the same time. So she handed the light off to Shippo. But then she saw the longing way that Rin looked at the marvelous piece of magic. So she leaned down and whispered into the _Kitsune's_ pointy ear, "Why don't you pass it off to Rin when we reach the halfway point and let her carry it the rest of the way."_

"_OK"_

"_Thanks Shippo, you're such a great kid!"_

_And so the parade headed back, Kagome bought up the rear, in case of stragglers._

_For a while Shippo dutifully kept the flashlight shining in front of Kohaku's feet, but soon his sense of fun got the better of him and he began flashing it around until Kagome called out to him to pay attention._

" _Sorry Kagome," But it was too late, Kohaku had gotten off of the trail and had led them into a dead end of a clearing surrounded with stumps and fallen trees._

_Kohaku made a wry face, "I'm sorry, we'll have to go back around. There's no way through here."_

"_It's all right Kohaku; we'll just blame it on Shippo, for __**not paying attention**__."_

_Shippo hung his head, but at the same time he grinned, he knew Kagome didn't mean it. Then the young _miko_ exclaimed in surprise and almost dropped her pot of water. "Wow did you feel that, right there?" _

_The children stepped over to where she pointed, and then shook their heads in puzzlement. "I don't feel anything Lady Kagome." Kohaku said. Kirara walked through it but then jumped away with a surprised chirp._

"_I think Kirara felt it. Why don't you try again Shippo?"_

_The young _Kitsune_ stood where she pointed, but just shrugged and shook his head. "What am I supposed to be feeling?" he asked._

_She put the pot down and held out her hands shivering, "it's a major cold spot, right there. You really don't feel it?"_

"_Nope." The other two just shook their heads._

"_Well that's just weird," she stated, staring at the contended spot, "but I guess it doesn't mean anything. Um, well let's get back. Shippo, its Rin's turn to carry the flashlight now." _

_Rin took the flashlight reverently into her hands, only to drop it, when a certain _hanyou_ suddenly popped up next to her with a "Keh!_

"_Damn it wench, what's taking so long, I could have gotten water and been back ages ago!"_

"_Inuyasha, you _baka_, you made Rin drop the flashlight. That's the only one I have, if it's broken I'm gonna' it you into next year! __**And watch your language, damn it**_

"_And here, since you're in such an all fired hurry, you can carry this!" And she plopped the pot of water into his clawed hands._

"_Now wait a minute, how am I supposed to use Tessaiga if we get attacked?"_

"_Inuyasha, you know very well that your brother's _youki_ is still lingering around here, there won't be another _youkai_ hanging around for miles!"_

"_Keh! That only works for sane _youkai_, you want some crazy _kitsune_ or something sneaking up on ya? And that's half brother damn it!"_

"_Hey!" Shippo screamed, once he realized the implications of what Inuyasha had said, "I'm not crazy! Take that back!"_

"_Inuyasha, apologize right now!"_

"_Why should I, the brats probably being driven crazy right now."_

"_Am not!" Shippo screamed jumping for Inuyasha's shoulder and attacking him with one of the bottles of water he was carrying. The bottle split with a pop, and the _Hanyou_ shrieked as he was sprayed with ice cold water. "Uh, um," The kit stuttered and then took off at a full run shouting "Later!"_

_The hanyou screamed, "Just wait till I catch you Shippo!" and took off after him._

_Kagome stood there for a long moment with her hand over her eyes, "Um, did anyone see where the flashlight got to?"_

"_Rin tugged at the hem of her sweater, "Here, Lady Kagome," and handed her the slightly battered flashlight._

"_Thank you, Rin-chan, and its just plain Kagome please." Luckily when she tried the switch, it still worked and she handed it off to Rin to carry. Then with a sigh, she hefted the pot again and they all retreated to the campfire. _

_--+--___

"_It was still dark, with a waning crescent moon hanging low in the sky, when Kagome was startled awake by the crash of a log falling in the smoldering fire pit. She sat up abruptly, knocking Shippo rolling along the ground. "Oops, sorry Shippo," she whispered. But then she relaxed. She was lucky, he hadn't woken up. 'Well Inuyasha chased him around the forest almost all night, he must be exhausted,' she thought. She gingerly pulled herself out of her sleeping bag into the icy morning air and reached back into the bag for her jacket and shoes, and then tucked Shippo back inside. As she stretched the soreness out of her back she admired the way the planet Venus seemed to hover right over the open arms of the lovely crescent moon. 'Kami! That's a __**waning**__ moon, and that means the new moon is just in a few days. Better start heading back home today, if I can just get Inuyasha to agree.' _

_She groped for the flashlight she had left next to her bag last night, then headed for the campfire and quietly added a few small logs. Her cooking pot was then hung over the waxing flames and she poured water into it from the bottles that they had filled the night before. But there were two bottles missing. Shippo had broken one bottle and had lost the other in the forest. 'Damn, this isn't going to be enough water, I'll just have to go back down to the river and fetch some more now.'_

_She crossed the clearing skirting around the bulk of Sesshomaru's odd two-headed dragon, then had to stifle giggles when she heard the high pitched snoring of Jaken, curled up into the curve of the dragon's belly. One of the dragon's heads came up and eyed her suspiciously._

"_Sorry," she giggled and held up the bottles, "Just getting water, I'll be right back." And then she wondered at her own sanity. 'Really,' she thought, 'he, she, it, whatever probably didn't understand a single word of what I said.'_

_As she passed the tree line all of the light from the sky was cut off and she gingerly made her way down hill, to where she thought she remembered the river had been. It took a lot longer without Kohaku to show the way. Finally she found herself on the riverbank and picked her way down to the water._

_Holding the first bottle over the water, she paused for a long, long moment, 'Oh, man, this is going to be so cold!' Then she plunged hand and bottle into the water stifling a shriek. The second and then third bottle were filled when she suddenly felt like a cold knife had passed through her chest. 'Wow,' she thought clasping her still dry left hand to her heart, 'that was weird, kinda like a mix of _kehaiyouki_ and that cold spot from last night.' _

_She stood and looked up as best she could over the top of the riverbank and seeing nothing decided to stay and fill the last bottle. 'A little splash on my face ought to wake me up nicely too,' she thought with a shudder. That accomplished, she made her way back up the bank, oriented herself by the rapidly lightening sky and headed back to camp._

_--+--___

_As she made her way back, she planned on what she could make for breakfast. 'I still have some dried fruit, cook that in the water add the last of my instant oatmeal and that will do for everyone except Inuyasha, he'll insist on ramen, I think I have, um, was it three packets left? I can fix one for breakfast in the skillet. That'll leave one each for his lunch and dinner. Maybe I can get him to catch some rabbits or something for us? Oh, maybe we can find a village and Miroku can do his usual routine? But that will leave Rin and Kohaku here alone, what will they eat?'_

_In her concentration, Kagome didn't realize that she had gone off on the same tangent as Kohaku the night before, and found herself back at the dead end clearing. "Shit! Well back I go." And then she heard a rustle behind her and the flashlight went up, to reflect in a pair of feral eyes._

_A twisted chimera of black and white twisted before her eyes, and she had just gasped in a breath to holler for Inuyasha, when a deep voice snapped, "turn that fucking thing off, woman!" _

"_Huh? Lord Sesshomaru?" And she lowered the light so that it mostly pointed to the ground. That's when she noticed, that what her eyes had told her was black, was actually red. Blood red, lots of blood red._

"_Yes, it is I, now go away."_

"_Ah, wait, is that your blood?"_

"_No, now go away."_

"_Please, please don't take this the wrong way, Lord Sesshomaru, but I think you just lied to me."_

"_Mortal, this blood is none of your concern. Leave me; your fetid stench is offending my nose!"_

"_Hey, now wait a minute mister! I do not stink! I'll have you know that I take plenty of baths!"_

"_Fine you don't stink, now just run along to your little _ningen_ friends and everything will be fine!"_

"_Huh, if everything is so fine, why won't you let me see your face? In fact why don't you just make me go away?" Kagome exclaimed triumphantly. And all she could think was, 'wow! He sure has a lot to say today. _Kami_ please, I hope he doesn't kill me.'_

_Slowly the red and white sleeve slid down and the red and white _Tai youkai_ slid down to one knee. It literally looked as though he had stuck his head in a bucket of blood. The left side of his face was so bruised she could see it through the blood pouring through a laceration high on his forehead, and his eye was almost swollen shut. Nothing else was visible behind the billows of silk, but she knew it had to be bad._

"_Oh _Kami_!" She exclaimed, and took a deep breath as she stepped forward._

"Miko_!" he snapped, "do not call…"_

"_Inuyaaaashaaaa!"_

"_The _hanyou_…"_

_Flashback continues in next chapter._

17


	6. The Blood of a Taiyoukai

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Inuyasha characters or stories, except any OC that I might come up with.

Author's note: Thank you for to everyone who is still reading this story. I really am very sorry for how long it had been since I updated and I am trying to do better, please continue to keep reading and I would appreciate any reviews and comments.

Also this is not a cross-over with a certain cancelled TV series, the term used is from a different context and I will explain more in an author's note at the end of the page.

Thank you.

Warnings: References to manga chapters: 239, 240, 407 & 504. This chapter is much more bloody and Sesshomaru may seem a bit more OOC.

Hearts Ease

Chapter 6

Blood of a _Tai-Youkai_

_Flash-back continues from Chapter 5._

"_Oh _Kami_!" Kagome exclaimed, taking a deep breath as she stepped forward._

"Miko_!" Sesshomaru snapped, "Do not call…"_

"_Inuyaaaashaaaa!"_

"_The _hanyou_…"_

_Even as the echoes of her scream died down amid the trees, Kagome's reflexes took over and as she took another step forward she had already opened one of her water bottles and had drenched the small towel she had brought with her to dry her hands and face. Her eyes were zeroed in on the bloody gash to the exclusion of anything else. In the back of her mind there were several voices that were yammering at her trying to gain her attention. 'O _Kami-Sama_ that's Sesshomaru.' 'Sesshomaru is bleeding, can he bleed?' 'Well _baka_, of course he can bleed!' 'Well he didn't bleed last time I saw him injured, remember Mouryoumaru's adamant spears? He didn't bleed then.' 'Uh, wait his mouth is moving is he talking to me?'_

_Kagome's mind snapped back to reality just as she ran into the sheathed Tenseiga that Sesshomaru had held out horizontally in front of him blocking her way._

"_Wench," he snarled "are your ears as broken as your brain? You will not approach this Sesshomaru!"_

_The young _Miko's_ eyes widened and her mouth gaped as she vaguely waved the wet towel in the air. "But, I just want to help."_

"Baka_ girl, there is poison in this Sesshomaru's blood."_

_The girl barely repressed the urge to say 'Well duh, I knew that.' Then the warning finally penetrated, 'oh, he means that he has been poisoned not that he is poisonous.' For a moment she wished that she could slap herself on the forehead. _

"_Um, is there anything that I can do to help?"_

"_Yes," he said, "you can go away."_

_She resisted the urge to throw the wet towel in his face and simply held it out to him. "Will you take this then, it will help with the swelling."_

_His brows drew together in a frown, and for a moment she thought that he was going to make some remark along the line of 'This Sesshomaru doesn't accept filthy wet rags from dirty _ningen_,' but instead he drove the sheathed point of Tenseiga into the soft ground and held out his empty hand._

_She froze for a moment in surprise then quickly folded the towel neatly. But as she laid it into his hand, she noticed a fine tremor, quickly suppressed as the _Tai-youkai_ saw her slight frown, and as he raised the cold wet cloth to his face Kagome looked him straight into his eyes. _

_The left eye was only a bare opening as the bruised swelling slowly forced it shut. She could see only a fraction of his pupil, but she could tell that it was closed tightly into a thin slit, the pupil of his right eye in contrast was dilated so large that it was almost as round as a humans, and as she watched it pinned, shrinking and then swelling again. _

"Miko_, leave now," He ordered, watching the human's face grow pale as she took in the gray tint of his skin underneath the blood, the creases of pain between his brows and at the corners of his eyes and his bloody shattered armor. Then she gasped out loud when she noticed the huge open wound between the fluffy white fur on his right shoulder and his neck. Sesshomaru closed his eyes, just a moment, in resignation. He knew that he would never get rid of her now. He blinked again as his vision of her blurred and then came back into focus. "Woman I have accepted your help you may go now." He demanded._

_Kagome blinked, stepping backwards, her mind now distracted from her fascinated horror of the wound still pulsing blood that ran down the _youkai's_ chest and back, drenching his hair and fur. And she thought, 'How, how could he still be bleeding so badly still? Even Inuyasha's wounds clot over faster than this.' _

_As the young _Miko_ ran her eyes down his body, taking in the still wet stains on his sleeves, on his _hakama_, Sesshomaru could hear the repeated shouts from his brother as he closed in on their position. _

"_Ka-go-meeee!... Ka-go-meeee!... Ka-go-meeee!..."_

_He saw the _Miko's_ head rise up, apparently her inferior hearing had finally picked up the raucous noise of the incoming _hanyou

_Kagome to her own horror, gave a nervous little giggle and lamely said. "That's Inuyasha," And as she watched the demon lord's eyes close again in pained resignation, she thought, 'you know if he was only capable of performing such a vulgar act, he would be rolling his eyes, right now. But of course Sesshomaru would never do something so innately human.'_

"_Kagome!" With a shout, the noisy _hanyou_ came bursting into the open with a great leap from the top of one of the huge trees that surrounded the odd clearing. _

"_Inuyasha!" Kagome greeted him, and then she saw the boy's mouth fall open in shock as he took in the scene of his half-brother, the high and mighty Sesshomaru, wounded, bloody, holding one of Kagome's pink fluffy towels to the side of his face and kneeling in front of __**his**__ Kagome as if the stricken _Tai-youkai_ was worshipping at her feet._

"_Kagome?" He asked in shocked query._

_Sesshomaru found his eyes closing again, if only he didn't have such a pounding headache he would be shaking his head in shame at their inane antics , as it was he could feel the nausea rising. _

"_Uh hi, Inuyasha," Kagome found herself saying lamely._

_The _hanyou's_ eyes looked at his half-brother, then at Kagome, and then back at Sesshomaru. And Kagome saw his hand go to the hilt of Tessaiga and his mouth spread into a terrible, evil fanged grin as he came to a conclusion that she knew she wouldn't like. _

"_Inuyasha, don't you dare draw that sword!" She scolded, "I didn't call you so that you could get into another damned stupid fight with your brother!"_

_Inuyasha snarled back at her, "that's half-brother wench, an' if I decide to take the head of the fuck'n bastard, who's made my life into a bloody hell, well, you're not gonna stop me see!" _

"_Inuyasha, you_baka_" The Miko stated calmly, "I may not be able to stop you from doing such a childish, honor-less act, __**but what I can do, is, 'it you into a hole so deep, that it will take you weeks to climb out of! **__The girl ended the sentence at a shriek so shrill that Inuyasha had to cover his flattened ears, and even the stoic _Tai-youkai_ flinched._

"_Ah, come on Kagome, you know what he's done to you, to me, he tried to kill you, just let me take one stroke, I'll let him live."_

"_No Inuyasha, your brother needs help, and I'm going to help him."_

"_I do not need help." Sesshomaru interjected._

_Kagome rolled her eyes. 'What is it,' she thought, 'what is it about these two? Do they live in a state of denial? This pride that denies that they need help, is it because they are _Youkai_ or is it just because they are male?'_

_As she opened her mouth to say something indignant that would probably have later led to Sesshomaru pulling her head off, once he felt better; Jaken came crashing through the trees._

"_My Lord!" He shouted and then came to a screeching halt that catapulted him into a somersault that came to a stop at Inuyasha's bare dirty feet. "Ah! Milord! What has happened? Why didn't you call me, milord?"_

_Inuyasha barely quelled the urge to kick the irritating green sycophant into the next district and instead stepped backwards with a sneer._

"_Jaken, __**Jaken**__! Be silent," Stated his Lord, leading Jaken to _kowtow_ hastily to his Master._

_Then Jaken looked up and fully took in his 'Lord and Master'. Only by dint of clutching his own hand firmly over his beaked mouth did he keep from shrieking in dismay. "Oh, Milord," he exclaimed softly, "What has happened to you Milord?" He gestured with the _Nintoujou_ clasped tightly in his right hand, "Did the filthy _hanyou_ do this to you Milord? Shall I burn him into Hell?"_

_Inuyasha huffed indignantly, "Keh! Just you try; you sawed off son of a rabid newt!"_

_As his servant gasped in dismay, and then took a breath to return the insult, Sesshomaru said very softly, "Jaken, be silent, this is a Threshold situation."_

"_Awk!" The _kappa_ exclaimed, paling to a sickly yellow. Then he said softly "Yes Milord, the duration and area?"_

_Kagome was stunned, the phrase 'Threshold situation' had such a modern cloak and dagger feel to it, and that it was Sesshomaru that had said it and that Jaken had understood it, well it just felt as if some of the underpinnings of her certainties of her life were being undermined._

_Sesshomaru closed his eyes with a contemplative look "Jaken, the duration is a fortnight and three days, the area is… Hnn? Approximately two and a half of my body lengths in all directions."_

"_Um, and the dweller milord?"_

"_Still alive… Jaken, I have been poisoned; you will take samples to the usual sources."_

_Jaken closed his bulbous yellow eyes and took a deep breath, "Yes milord, from where should I take the um… samples?"_

"_My right shoulder," Sesshomaru replied leaning forward to give the diminutive _youkai_ access, "Claws only Jaken, no bare skin."_

"_Yes milord." Jaken stepped forward a small but sharp knife appearing in his hand, and hopped up on Sesshomaru's knee._

_Kagome turned her face away, and even Inuyasha grimaced in disgust when Jaken pushed the blood sodden white fur to the ground and began to carve inch-wide chunks of flesh from the _Tai-youkai's_ right shoulder. Then they both jumped when Jaken suddenly shrieked in horror. __**"Ah! Milord, the weapon, it is still in your poor shoulder!"**_

_Sesshomaru actually flinched as the sudden shrill noise felt as though daggers had been thrust through his already ringing ears. His reflex move threw Jaken into the tree-line, scattering blood and the bits of flesh Jaken had been carving from his body._

_Jaken recovered quickly and came scurrying back, pausing only to gather the small bits into a waxed leather pouch he had produced from no where. He quickly finished while Kagome looked on gagging at the macabre sight, and Inuyasha snickered._

_Jaken dithered back over to his master; where he again _kowtowed_ and then exclaimed very softly, "Milord, milord, my gravest apologies, but it appears that the weapon is still embedded in your shoulder."_

_The _Tai-youkai's_ eyes closed for a moment and then he replied very evenly, "Hn, yes, Jaken, of this I am aware."_

_Kagome gasped a little, 'was that a joke? Did __**Sesshomaru**__ just make a joke? __**Sesshomaru**__?'_

"_Milord, may I try to remove it?"_

_The demon lord inclined his head slightly and Jaken jumped back up on his knee. "It is the source of the poison Jaken, claws only; do not let it touch your skin."_

_Jaken leaned as best he could over the tall lords shoulder and began to stick his claws into the open wound, his claws closed on something that neither Inuyasha nor Kagome could see. His body leaned back as he began to pull, and then his claws slipped and he tumbled to the ground._

"_Ah, fuck this!" Inuyasha exclaimed and strutted forward, "That stupid toad ain't gonna get anywhere, let me do it!"_

_Jaken took up a defensive stance in front of his master, he had dropped the_Nintoujou_, but he was ready to use his claws and his tiny teeth if he had too. "You will not approach my lord!"_

"_Jaken."_

"_Yes milord?" The_ kappa's _voice quavered in dismayed anticipation._

"_You will let the_hanyou_ try."_

_Inuyasha wanted to spit, or cry, or even just howl,' _hanyou_, huh, couldn't the damned bastard…? He just always has to throw that into my face.' _

_Even as the _hanyou_ stared down at the bloody and disheveled _Tai-yokai_, Sesshomaru tilted his head to the left giving Inuyasha not only access to his right shoulder but also exposing the long vulnerable column of his throat._

_Kagome watched in suspense at the rush of emotions on her friend's expressive face, she knew the thoughts that must be going through Inuyasha's mind. All of the hated, the resentment, all of the bad memories of a long, long lifetime, as the boy's clawed hand reached toward his brother's neck she whispered his name and hoped._

_Inuyasha mesmerized by that bloody white skin, moved his claws closer to that oh so tempting, most vulnerable part of his half-brother's body, 'just one quick swipe, just one, and I will never have to hear that fucking sneering, oh so superior voice again, I will never be looked down on again with those eyes that have always judged me so harshly and unfairly for a birth that I couldn't help.' Then he heard Kagome whisper his name and remembered, 'oh shit she's standing right behind me, if I do this she will never forget…'_

'_She will never forget and fuck this to hell! She will never ever forgive me!' The_hanyou_ closed his eyes and took a deep shuddering breath. And then he remembered Mukotsu, a broken hut full of smoke, and his unconscious but still alive friends, had he actually seen a vague hint of hurt in his brother's eyes when he had accused the lord of hurting Kagome? And he remembered the eerie deadness in those same eyes as the lord had begun to dissolve into the flaming darkness of the _Meidou_. Eyes that almost seemed… thankful?_

"_Remember, _Otouto_, do not touch me with your bare skin." The _Tai-yokai_ murmured softly._

"_Yeah, I remember, like I would forget so soon! Fucking bastard!" Even as he muttered profanely the hanyou was eyeing the gaping wound that was still bleeding freely. "Yep, there it is I see the fucking thing."_

_It seemed to be the splintered end of a broken off shaft, was it of wood, bone? It was too bloody to tell, 'too thick for an arrowhead,' he thought, 'it must be a spearhead.' Somehow it had been driven straight down through the _Tai-youkai's_ shoulder from above. 'Shit I bet the damn thing cut right through his collar bone, this is going to fucking hurt.' He couldn't help but smile a little at the thought._

_Inuyasha covered his left hand with the sleeve of his fire-rat fur _haori_; placed that hand on Sesshomaru's shoulder to gain leverage and then reached for the bit of shaft that he could see with the claws of his right hand._

"_No skin! Inuyasha," Sesshomaru snapped._

"_Open your eyes you fucking asshole; I'm using the damned fire-rat!" Inuyasha snarled. "Like you fucking care if I ever got poisoned, huh? Like you haven't fucking tried often enough." Even as he continued his diatribe, Inuyasha had grasped hold of the slippery splintered shaft. He made one quick jerk, but it didn't budge. "All right!" Then he drove his claws deep into the shaft and gave a mighty tug. The spearhead came loose with a tearing, sucking sound._

_Sesshomaru's head rolled back and his mouth gaped open for just a moment, the only sign he gave of his agony._

"_Huh," Inuyasha grunted proudly then took a closer look at the hideous weapon he had just removed from his half-brother's shoulder. It was nearly a foot long, of some unidentifiable material and it was barbed. Barbed! "_Oi_ you fucking bastard, why didn't you tell me this damned thing had barbs! If'n I was going to kill you, I wanted to do it deliberately and with my own claws!"_

_Sesshomaru smirked, "Hn, but you received so much joy from that, _hanyou._" And then his body swayed for a moment and he blinked his one open eye rapidly as his vision blurred once again. "Leave. Now."_

_Inuyasha cursed and flung the ugly spearhead to the ground. "Come on Kagome, we're leaving!" He stuck his nose in the air and started to stick his bloody claws into his sleeves to stalk away, but Kagome caught him by the wrist._

"_Wait a minute Inuyasha." And then she uncapped one of her bottles of water to pour over his hands and bloody claws._

_Meanwhile Jaken had produced a large piece of cloth and had started to wrap it around the spearhead._

"_Master Jaken!" Kagome called to him, "before you wrap that thing, could you, um, check to make sure it isn't missing any pieces, that could, urm, still in be inside of Lord Sesshomaru's wound."_

_Jaken looked to his master and when he nodded took the _ningen's_ surprisingly sensible advice. He laid the weapon back down on the ground and requested the use of one of the _Miko's_ strange light-weight clear water bottles, and then carefully rinsed the spearhead and his own claws. He then picked up the weapon with the cloth and studied it. It was an evil looking thing that made him shudder. But as far as he could tell it was intact. He peered closer, was it made of steel? No, the little _youkai_ frowned, it seemed to be hard enough to be steel, but the color was wrong, and it looked as though it was… grown? Wood, bone? Well, what did it matter now? He produced another swatch of cloth from his sleeve to wrap the ugly thing. He glanced over at the _Miko_; she caught his eye and he nodded._

"_All right, we're done here," Inuyasha griped and grabbed Kagome's hand to drag her away. _

_The _Miko_ fought his grasp for a moment, "wait Inuyasha, I think Lord Sesshomaru has a concussion and that he's also going into shock."_

"_Do I look like I care? Let's go!"_

_Kagome let him pull her until they were out of sight range of the clearing and then dug in her heels and sharply tugged her hand out of his._

_The _hanyou_ opened his mouth and the girl covered it with her hand, before he could say a word._

"_Just wait Inuyasha", she whispered, "I think I caught a signal from Jaken, he wants to talk with us."_

_Inuyasha opened his mouth again to protest, but the girl held up her finger, "Just a few minutes that all I ask."_

_The _hanyou_ turned his back on her in disgust but didn't attempt to leave, and that was when Sango and Miroku showed up riding on Kirara's back._

"_Kagome!" Sango started to exclaim, but Kagome made a shushing gesture and Sango just whispered to the _nekomata_ to land and then looked at the girl with a question in her eyes._

_The teen looked at her two human friends seriously and whispered. "Well it's about Sesshomaru, I, um ran into him this morning when I went to get water, and, um he's terribly wounded. He wouldn't let me help him, but he did let Inuyasha pull this really awful spearhead out of his shoulder…" _

_Sango and Miroku both gasped at this and looked at Inuyasha's back, but the _hanyou_simply stuck his nose higher in the air._

_Kagome went on, "…anyway he told me he was poisoned and he told Jaken to cut pieces out of his shoulder, which was really, really gross, and I think he has a concussion, and, and he's going into shock.." And then her breath ran out._

"_Lady Kagome," The monk asked, "So what are we doing here and why are we whispering?" _

"_Oh, well, I, um, thought I saw Jaken give me a signal to wait and I thought that if we gave them a little privacy, "Inuyasha snickered at this and Miroku grinned at him as Kagome sent then a fierce frown…" Maybe Sesshomaru would explain to him what happened, so I'm waiting to see if he… Jaken, that is, not Sesshomaru shows up, and by the way where's Shippo, Rin and Kohaku?" _

_After a seconds pause to make sure that the young _Miko_ was indeed finished the_Taijiya_ answered, "Well after Inuyasha woke me up running out from the camp, I woke _

Houshi-sama_ and Kohaku, and then that weird dragon came lumbering over, so we left the children asleep with the two of them standing guard. What are you going to do Kagome-chan?"_

"_What do you think, Sango-_chan,_" she smiled tiredly, "I'm gonna help."_

_Inuyasha took a big breath, ready to berate her for her stupidity, but Kagome was ready, "Inuyasha, if you say one word, I'll say __**the**__ word," She hissed angrily; "Just wait, we need to know more, then I will decide what to do." She closed her eyes for a moment for thought, "Sango-_chan_, Kirara, could you please retrieve my bag and first aid kit from the camp-site and ask Kohaku if he would start packing up everything, quietly of course, to move it down here; Miroku-_Sama_ we're going to need a fire, and water, lots and lots of water." _

_Sango quickly hugged the teen and then mounted Kirara and took off into the air. The Monk also made a motion to embrace the _Miko_; but at the sound of a low growl from the _hanyou_, simply grinned and saluted her and then began to gather a pile of dry wood._

"_And what about me, Kagome, what fucking thing are you gonna ask me to do? 'Cuz if its to help that asshole, well, nothing you say's gonna make me help!" _

_And then the _hanyou_ was shocked to be enveloped in the _Miko's_ warm hug as she grabbed hold of him and murmured, "It's OK Inuyasha, you did enough, I think you might have saved your brother's life already, when you pulled that poisonous thing from his body."_

"_Keh!" He sneered and pulled away, "I only did it 'cause I want to defeat the stupid bastard when he's strong." Then he turned his back again in disdain when Kagome grinned at him. "And that's half-brother damn-it!"_

_-- --_

_Minutes passed, the sun rose higher in the sky and Kagome stared worriedly back in the direction of the clearing while Inuyasha sulked and Miroku gathered up a substantial pile of firewood and tender. He had already made a side trip to the river to fill the empty bottles. Sango and Kirara returned. And Sango hefted the _Miko's_ bag to the ground with a soft thud. She had also brought the pot of water that Kagome had left on the fire earlier, wrapped in Sango's own bedroll, to contain the heat. She hadn't spilled a drop. _

"_Thank you Sango-_chan_, are the kids still asleep?"_

"_Yeah," Sango smiled sadly at her, "I think that helping like this, you know, being trusted to guard the children, makes Kohaku feel better."_

_Kagome smiled back, "we're gonna do everything we can Sango, we're gonna save him!"_

"_Kagome, he told me last night, after you were asleep, he told me that he didn't want me to be angry if after he died, that, that I shouldn't be angry at Lord Sesshomaru, if he doesn't use Tenseiga… Kagome, if Kohaku dies, if the shard is removed, the Tenseiga can't revive him."_

"_Oh Sango-_chan_, I'm so sorry!" Kagome felt tears welling up into her eyes as another of their not even dared spoken of hopes was wrenched away._

"_Fft," the_hanyou_ spat, "we'll just haf to find another way, then. Don't you dare give up, Sango!" Then he turned away as his face reddened under her grateful look; only to look directly at a certain green sycophantic toad, tottering towards them "Keh! Well it's about time!"_

_The tiny _kappa youkai_ cringed under the fierce gaze of the _hanyou_ and the hopeful gaze of the three _ningen._ Kagome found pity welling up in her heart for the elderly demon, she thought that he looked old and ill, and hopeless. "What's wrong Master Jaken? Has he gotten worse?"_

_The diminutive_youkai_ sighed and waved his right hand in the air. "My master refuses to allow you to help him, and I must go, um, go, yeah, to try to find a cure." He seemed to shrink even more into his overly large _haori.

"_Um? Master Jaken? What is it that you have there?" Stuttered Kagome._

"_Oh this?" He replied, holding out the hand he had been waving in the air._

_In his small three-fingered hand was a head, a small head that had the soft gray fur, floppy ears and beady black eyes of a rodent, but it had the circular tooth-lined sucking mouth of a lamprey eel._

_At the collective "Ewws" of the humans, Jaken gave a sick little giggle, "it was on my master's legs, many of them, he, he already had killed most of them, but, three were still alive. They were, were __**eating**__ him! The poison didn't affect them, so I'm taking this one as, as a sample." Then Jaken grinned a clenched toothed smile and sat down hard with a dismayed, almost hysterical wail. "I don't know what to do! When the han-…, when Lord Inuyasha pulled out that filthy weapon, it cut through his ribs, his lungs, he's coughing up blood!" _

"_Jaken!" Kagome went down on her knees before him," Master Jaken , is there something else?"_

"Miko_," he wailed, "That 'cussion' thing you said, and that 'shock', would it make him bleed from his ears and nose? Would it make him forget? Twice, twice he asked me who I was! He didn't remember me!"_

_Again Kagome found herself closing her eyes and taking a deep breath to compose herself. Then saying, "Yes Jaken that is exactly what a concussion does;" She pushed herself to her feet in determination and began to stalk back to the clearing to confront the stubborn _Tai-Youkai, _not even attempting to brush off the wet debris now clinging to her knees._

_-- --_

_When Kagome made it back to the clearing, she discovered that Sesshomaru was somehow back on his feet again, in the same place she had left him, but with his back to her. 'Shit,' she hissed to herself, when she saw that his hand shook where it rested on the hilt of his sword. 'Standing, he needs to be lying down, or the damn shock will kill him.'_

_She stomped around him, skirting the little pile of ugly, parasitical gray heads and bodies, to face him and saw that both his eyes were closed, he was using his sword as a cane, resting his weight on it and he hadn't even noticed that she had arrived. For a moment she paused and simply ran her eyes over his body, simply to make sure that she had seen everything. And then as a single golden eye opened to gaze on her, she dropped to the muddy ground and _kowtowed_ as deeply as she could. _

"_Lord Sesshomaru, thirteen months ago, your actions saved my life and the lives of my friends from the poisoner Mukotsu. You said that saving our lives was incidental so that we owed you nothing, but still I feel that I owe you a life debt. Please allow me to repay that debt by allowing me to treat your wounds."_

_She waited for a moment to allow him to answer, but heard only silence, so she raised her eyes to meet his and looked into one totally dilated confused eye. Again she waited for him to speak. "Lord Sesshomaru?"_

_Then as the others burst into the clearing behind him, he opened his mouth, blood bubbling down his chin at every syllable and majestically intoned, "Girl do I know you?" _

_Kagome plopped down on her butt in despair and crossed her legs. She ignored the cold clammy feel of the moisture seeping through her clothes, And said, "Yes Lord Sesshomaru you know me, I am Higurashi Kagome, I travel with your half-brother Inuyasha, we searched for the _Shikon no Kakkera_ together and now we search for Naraku to destroy him."_

_The _Tai-youkai_ looked at her blankly for a moment and she sighed. But then he blinked once, twice, "Hn, the _ningen_ filly, the little _Miko_, and is my _Otouto,_ here also?"_

"_Yes my Lord, he is behind you."_

_For a moment his body swayed as though he was going to attempt to turn around, Kagome braced herself in case he fell forward on top of her. Inuyasha meanwhile stomped forward growling, to stand beside her, arms crossed in front of him and his hands clinched angrily up his sleeves._

"_Jaken!"_

_Jaken scurried forward and threw himself down beside her, "Yes, Milord!"_

"_Jaken, explain, why are these people here?" He coughed; his jaw clenched in pain and then lowered his head to wipe his chin on his shoulder. _

"_Ah, milord, the_Miko_ possesses healing knowledge that this humble servant does not. She tells me that you have a 'cussion' and a shock, milord and that is why you do not remember this Jaken."_

_Looking up from her position on the ground it looked to the teen, as if Sesshomaru was trying to work through what Jaken had just incompetently tried to explain to him, and then his gaze caught hers and he growled "explain."_

_Kagome inclined her head in a slight bow and said "Yes my Lord. When a body has lost too much blood or has experienced too much pain or, um, mental trauma, the body goes into what is called 'shock' the circulatory system, begins to shut down." Than as she saw him frown, she added, "The person's heart cannot beat as strongly, it speeds up and beats shallowly; the persons' hands and legs will feel cold and may shake." She most carefully did not look at his hand trembling on the hilt of Tenseiga. "Um, the person may feel confusion and, um, fear, and feel very thirsty and nauseated. A person who is in shock needs to lie down and elevate his arms and legs to help his heart beat and push blood to his brain."_

_She watched as the_Tai-youkai_ blinked and then he demanded "explain this 'cussion."_

"_Ah it's actually 'a concussion', my Lord. Um, a strike on the head can cause a concussion, it is when the brain hits the inside of the skull and bruises, this can cause a severe headache, ringing in the ears, blurred vision. Amnesia, ah, forgetfulness, Bleeding from the ears and nose and well other stuff, but, I really can't remember right now. But it is very dangerous," She grinned up at him sheepishly._

_He stared back his face it's usually blank. "Jaken, you said this is a threshold?"_

"_Yes milord."_

"_Very well, you will do your duty, explain to these people what needs to be done, the children will need to be sent away to a safe location." He stopped for a moment his face showing momentary confusion._

"_Sango and Kirara can take them to the _Miko_ Kaede's village, Lord Sesshomaru," Kagome offered._

_Sango stepped forward, "Yes Lady Kaede can raise a strong barrier, and they will be safe there."_

"_Hn, Jaken the dispatch bag…"_

"_Uh, yes milord?"_

"_The dispatch bag…" His voice seemed to be getting weaker, the group watched as his body swayed again, fighting against gravity "Jaken the scrip for that village and the… nearest village, the small cash. Give it to…"_

_The _Tai-youkai's_ eyes passed over all the members of the group; Kagome still sitting on the ground gaping up at him, the scowling face of his little brother, the pious, mealy- mouthed Monk and then finally at the_taijiya_ "…Give it to the _taijiya_." The _Houshi's_ mouth dropped open in insulted indignity._

_And then his gaze grew faraway… "Rin-… Stop her Jaken!"_

_That was when the humans could hear the girl, shouting "Lord Sesshomaru! Lord Sesshomaru!" As she ran dodging and panting through the brush, Kohaku on her heels, followed by Shippo and the dragon lumbering behind them._

_But Jaken wasn't quick enough; she dodged him and went straight for her Lord, "No, Lord Sesshomaru, no, please don't die!"_

"_Rin," the_Tai-youkai_ intoned, "stop, now"_

_Rin stopped and stayed perfectly still, one foot poised in the air._

"_Rin, you may move, but you may not approach me or touch me, do you understand?"_

_Rin relaxed, looking at him longingly, "Yes milord! But I do not want you to die milord!"_

"_I will not die Rin, but I need you to listen to me and obey me, Rin." The child nodded, "I need for you and Kohaku to go with this _taijiya_, and she will take the two of you to a village…"_

"_No, milord I won't leave you!"_

"_You must Rin."_

_Rin's face set in a fierce frown, but as she opened her mouth to protest again, Kagome interrupted, "Rin-_chan_, we need for you and Kohaku-_kun_ to go help a really nice _baa-chan,_ her name is Kaede_-baa-chan_, Shippo-_chan_ will be going too," Her fierce look cut off the kitsune's indignant squeal. "And we all will be staying here,__**everyone**__ will be safe. I promise."_

_The little girl looked at her Lord; she had never seen him injured this badly, not since the day that she had first found him, lying paralyzed in the forest near her village. He didn't want her to stay; he didn't want her to stay and help. So she did the only thing that she could, she said, "Yes my Lord, May I pick some flowers for you milord?" And she smiled; although she thought that her heart would break._

"_Yes Rin, you may."_

_Kagome let out a deep breath, as Rin ran past her into the middle of the clearing, she turned her head, and then she saw the sun rising over the immense drift of flowers blooming in just the right place where they would get the most sun; early blooming glory-of-the-snow, pale blue like a piece of fallen sky accented with the white of snowdrops and clumps of red and purple crocus, and the occasional snowdrift glowing like a white opal. "Wow! So beautiful!" And she couldn't help but wonder, 'is that why Sesshomaru stood up and turned around, so that, __**this**__ would be his last sight. Nah, really it couldn't be.' And then as she turned back and saw his gaze follow his ward, she wondered, 'could it?'_

_A deep bovine groan from Sesshomaru's dragon brought her attention back to Kohaku and to the pouting face of her fox kit. Kohaku paused in his unloading of the great pack animal, "I'm sorry lady Kagome, I didn't get everything, Rin woke up and…" his arm made a sweeping running-off gesture._

"_Thank you Kohaku, the rest we will get later. Shippo, Miroku gathered some dry wood, could you bring it here and, um, show Kohaku how to use my lighter?"_

_The little fox kit stood and turned his back to her in such a perfect snitty imitation of the hanyou that Kagome had to bite back a smile, "please Shippo, I'll let you have the box of pocky, I hid from you."_

_Shippo raised his nose higher, but left the clearing to get the wood with just enough stomp in his step to show that she wasn't forgiven for sending him away._

_The girl rose to her feet as gracefully as she could with a numb butt and thighs, she stumbled once but Inuyasha caught her arm and kept her from falling. "Kagome ya got to stop spoiling that brat, a whack on the head would cure him real fast ya know."_

"_Thank you Inuyasha," and then she ran her eyes over the ground, she picked out a nearby empty space for the fire and a soft looking grassy space and asked Kohaku to lay out her ground cloth there, and then she turned around and met the puzzled gaze of the still standing, Tai-youkai. "Lord Sesshomaru, do I have permission to treat your wounds?"_

_He blinked and for a moment she was afraid he had forgotten her again, and then he regally intoned; "you may bind my shoulder ningen," and he looked over her shoulder, totally dismissing her._

_Kagome's mouth opened in angry protest, but then she caught the sight of Jaken wildly waving his arms and shaking his head no. "Um, my Lord, I'm afraid that you are too, um, tall for me to reach, if you could, um, recline, then I could bind your shoulder." She gestured to where she had asked Kohaku to lay out the canvas ground cloth and she prayed that he would listen. _

_Sesshomaru looked at the odd green cloth and blinked, "Jaken?"_

"_Yes Milord?"_

"_Did I inform you of the area and duration of this Threshold?"_

"_Yes, milord."_

_A moment of silence, and then, "Jaken!"_

"_Ah yes! Sorry milord, you said that the duration was a fortnight and three days and the area was two and a half of your body lengths."_

"_It is too far away ningen, Jaken explain."_

"_Explain what milord?"_

_Sesshomaru squeezed his eye shut in irritation, yes this time he really would kill the little sycophant, just as soon as this headache went away._

"_Jaken, he means explain it to us." Kagome said, shivering as the cold bit through her damp jeans._

"_And hurry up with it!" Inuyasha growled raising his fist._

_Jaken threw his small hands up into the air, "Ah! Yes of course! Well you see, milord is standing in a __**gate**__ that has been torn, it cannot close. His, um, physical presence keeps it from tearing open further and his _youki_ is being used by the gate to repair itself, He must stay within the area of the Threshold or the gate will tear open!"_

"_And?" Miroku asked in fascination._

"_And what?"_

"_What will happen if the gate tears open?"_

_The _kappa's_ mouth opened then shut and then opened again, "I don't know, I've never seen it happen."_

"_Things come through," the _Tai-youkai_, answered, "things that don't belong in this world." And then he opened his eye and gave the_ Miko_ a hard look._

"_Okaaay," Kagome said, suddenly uneasy under that heavy gaze, "so Lord Sesshomaru is acting like the lock on a door and he is stuck here for a fortnight and three days, that's seventeen days and he can't move more than let's see, about fifteen feet from wherever he is now. Doe's that about cover it, Jaken?"_

_Jaken's mouth moved as he tried to work it all out in his head. Then he nodded and then exclaimed "Yes! Um, but then there is also the problem with the blood."_

"_Blood, Jaken?" asked Sango._

_Jaken tilted his head and looked up at her sideways, "surely __**you**__ know _taijiya_, about the effects of the blood of a _Tai-youkai_?"_

"_Oh!" Sango exclaimed, and then blushed. "I never thought…"_

"_Yes, Lady Sango?" Miroku questioned as he sidled closer to the _taijiya_, enthralled as he was by the glorious pink of her cheeks. He felt his cursed hand ready itself for a good grope._

"_Stay away from me_Houshi-sama_," she replied backing away a step, keeping her eyes on both of his hands._

"_Sango! Miroku, leave her alone, this isn't the time!"_

_Miroku pulled his grope up short and stood tall with his best innocent look plastered on his handsome face. "Yes Lady Kagome?"_

_Kagome just shook her head at him and then looked her question at Sango._

"_Ah, well, it's just that the scent of the blood of a _Tai-youkai_ will call every lesser _youkai_ for miles around. They won't be able to help it, the power…" She looked uneasily at the Lord and then back at Kagome, "I assume that right now Lord Sesshomaru is blocking his scent…" He inclined his head, "And that when he is unconscious he will no longer be able to block it, and then we will be swarmed. Kagome?" she asked uneasily, "how good of a shield can you raise now?" _

"_Not as good as Miroku's; ten feet, maybe twelve feet wide, and for four or five hours."_

_And then quiet unassuming Sango became the General she was born to be. "Shippo! Where's that damned firewood?! Kohaku, please move that ground sheet over here; Kagome why don't we put the fire pit here instead?" A stunned Kagome just nodded as Kohaku rearranged the canvas and Shippo ran back into the clearing panting, under a pile of wood taller than he was._

_The _Miko's_ first aid kit seemed to miraculously appear in her hands along with clean rags for bandages, "here, Kagome," The _taijiya_ said as she hung the pot of already heated water over the newly lit flame, "do you want all of your towels now or later?"_

"_Half of them now I think Sango," Kagome stuttered._

_And three towels were laid out on the canvas ground sheet._

"_More water_Houshi,_" and Sango thrust the empty bottles into the Monks hands._

_Inuyasha stood back, one eye on Kagome and one eye on his brother_

_Kagome knelt next to the ground sheet and laid out everything she had on one of the clean towels, scissors, a sharp knife, tweezers, surgical tape, bottles of sterile saline solution, bandages, gauze, dried crushed herbs, antibacterial pills and salve and the box of sturdy surgical gloves that her mother had thankfully insisted that she take with her this time. 'I will never doubt my mother's clairvoyance again,' she thought. Regretfully she put back the pain-killers, no aspirin or ibuprofen when his blood won't clot. She weighed the package of blessed paper bandages in her hand, began to put them away and then changed her mind and laid it back with the rest of her supplies. 'And now all we need is the patient.'_

_The teen stood, leaned down to grab a handful of gloves and returned to the solemn circle surrounding the injured Lord. She handed out a pair to everyone and showed them how to put them on. Inuyasha refused, turning up his nose. "Those things fucking stink, Wench."_

_Rin approached the_Miko_ with an uncertain look on her face, "Lady Kagome, I have the flowers for My Lord," and the girl handed the teen a flower bracelet, woven of glory-of-the-snow and snowdrops._

"_Oh, Rin it is so lovely, I hope some day you will make one for me."_

_Rin just smiled sadly, as the Miko approached her stricken Lord._

_Kagome slowly closed in on the lord, his eyes were closed again, and she didn't want to startle him, "Lord Sesshomaru," she whispered, "we have a place ready for you lay down on."_

_His eye snapped open so suddenly, that she stepped back. "Who are you? I don't know you ningen? What have you done?"_

"_Don't you know me? Milord?" Jaken wailed._

_Sesshomaru shook his head, and flinched as his headache escalated, his hand let go of the Tenseiga as he involuntarily raised it to his forehead, and his body swayed as he went into a paroxysm of coughing. As he fell forward spewing blood, Inuyasha pulled Kagome out of the way and he went crashing down. All of the rest of the group stepped forward, but none were fast enough except for the _nekomata_, Kirara in her battle-form slipped under his chest and eased him the rest of the way to the ground, although she let out a small whine when the one remaining spike on his armor stabbed into her flank and drew blood._

"_Kirara," Sango breathed, "are you alright?"_

_Sesshomaru growled as he resisted the urge to curl up into the soft fur and just let go. He fisted his clawed hand into the cat's thick fur and tried to shove himself away, and then Kirara purred at him, he growled in reply. She purred. He growled. She purred, and then he relaxed, but his eye was still open and staring._

"_It's almost like their having a conversation," Kagome whispered reverently._

"_They are," Shippo chirped and stopped playing with his gloves, as everyone stared at him._

"_Keh! Like hell, and how would a little runt like you know anyway!" Inuyasha scoffed._

"_My Mom and Dad taught me, butthead." And the kitsune stuck out his tongue at the fuming hanyou._

"_Inuyasha, sit," the Miko softly said as the enraged boy went for the fox kit. "Shippo, what are they saying?" She asked._

_The small kitsune shifted nervously, "um, I don't know if I should tell you," he said._

"_Is it secret?"_

"_No, but it's not really words, like, well you know __**words**__!"_

_Kagome dearly wanted to know what the two _youkai_ were saying but if it made Shippo uneasy… "Whatever you think, Shippo."_

"_Um, OK well first Sesshomaru…"_

"_That's __**Lord**__ Sesshomaru fox!" Jaken interjected with a swing of his recovered_Nintoujou_. Only to be met with Inuyasha's fist._

"_Yeah Shippo, what's the asshole saying?"_

"_You know this isn't really words, right."_

"_Just do the best you can, Shippo." Kagome reassured him with a frown at the hanyou._

"_OK, well first he was saying something like 'leave me, don't touch me,' and Kirara told hi, back, 'I have you, relax, you're injured, sleep,' and he said 'can't sleep, not safe,' she said 'safe now, sleep,' he said again, 'not safe, never safe,' she said 'safe now, we have you, sleep,' and then…" Shippo paused to take a breath, "'he said 'your pardon lady, I didn't mean to injure you,' I didn't catch some of what he said then." _

"_And what then Shippo, did he say something else?"_

"_Um, he said 'lady do I know you?'"_

_Flashback continues in next chapter._

Author's note: This story is not meant to be a crossover with the TV series Threshold; instead the term is being used more as it would have been in 19th century spiritualism or Theosophy, although the gate and the 'Dweller on the Threshold' are physical and not manifestations of astral projection. Also since the story would be happening in 2000 Kagome wouldn't have recognized that reference.

This flashback takes place between manga chapters 512 and 513. Although in my story Kagome is three months short of turning 18, instead of still being 15, as in the manga.

If you have any questions please ask.

Thank you for reading!


	7. Balsamic Moon

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Inuyasha characters or stories, except any OC that I might come up with.

I apologize it's been close to two years since I've updated, and I don't have any excuses.

Thank you to all of you who have continued reading. Especially to those who have left reviews: Thank you Justified Assassin, Silva Moonlight, Servant of Anubis, Melody Moon, Soubifan700, Tsukiyo Tenshi, Shadow-binder and WolfAngel-Kaiasa. Every-time I got one of your reviews I wrote a little bit more.

Warnings: A slight reference to manga chapter 355.

Hearts Ease

Chapter 7

Balsamic Moon

_Flash-back continues from Chapter 6._

"OK, well first he was saying something like 'leave me, don't touch me,' and Kirara told him, back, 'I have you, relax, you're injured, sleep,' and he said 'can't sleep, not safe,' she said 'safe now, sleep,' he said again, 'not safe, never safe,' she said 'safe now, we have you, sleep,' and then…" Shippo paused to take a breath, "'he said 'your pardon lady, I didn't mean to injure you,' I didn't catch some of what he said then."

"And what then Shippo, did he say something else?"

"Um, he said 'lady do I know you?'"

***

_For a moment Kagome's head reeled in indignation, so lord Fluffy Butt had called her, Kagome, a 'girl', and a '_ningen_ filly', but considered Kirara, a 'lady'. This thought was all it took to push her stress over into hysteria. Taking a step back the young _Miko_ clamped her still gloved hands over her mouth to hold in her hysterical laughter. Her shoulders shook with the effort and she couldn't help emitting a grunting noise, Everyone except her patient turned to look at her and she clamped her lips together even harder, only to have a high pitched whinny leak out of her nose. At their wide-eyed stares she finally lost it. Amidst her uncontrollable laughter, tears rolling down her face, all she could articulate was, "Oh shit, oh _Kami-Sama_… I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" _

_Sango stepped up to her a disturbed look on her face, "Kagome stop!" And as the _Taijiya_ raised her hand to slap her, the girl regained some of her control._

"_I'm OK, Oh _Kami_ I'm sorry, but it was just too much!"_

_Kagome glanced around at all of her friends, Sango with her hand still in the air Miroku looking concerned, Inuyasha frowning, Shippo and Rin with their mouths agape looking aghast. Kohaku looked scared and Jaken was looking quite hysterical himself._

"_What is it? What is it? Is she possessed?" The little _Kappa_ cried un-nerved waving his staff at her, ready to use it if needed._

_Sango's hands came to rest on Kagome's shoulders and shook her gently. "Kagome what's wrong? What was too much?"_

"_I'm sorry Sango, but what he said, it was, it just sounded too much like some guy's lame pick-up line in a bar. And he, heh, heh, he and oh _Kami_, he and Kirara… It was just…"_

_The blank stares that her explanation garnered, told her that nobody understood. For a moment she balanced on a long explication of the future, bars and the singles scene, but her common sense finally kicked in and she just lamely said. "Oh well, I guess you just had to be there."_

_Inuyasha snarled, "Kagome, you're such a fucking idiot! Either hurry up with what you're doing, or we're leav'n right now!"_

_Kagome opened her mouth to give the _Hanyou_ a good piece of her mind when Rin cried out softly, "No, Sesshomaru-_Sama_, don't get up!"_

_Everyone turned as one and Kagome huffed in annoyance, sure enough the stubborn dog was trying to get to his feet again. He was on his knees, Tenseiga propped against his right shoulder with his hand wrapped around its black and white hilt. His brows drawn together in a pained frown and his mouth gaping as he panted. He made an awful wet bubbling sound as he struggled to draw in a breath._

_Rin had stepped forward just as the _Tai-Youkai's_ body convulsed and Kohaku pulled her back by her _obi_ as Sesshomaru spewed a huge gout of foamy blood barely missing her feet. Kirara too had gotten out of the way, leaping to her feet just in time. The blood stood out brightly against the trampled snow, its heat melting it into a muddy red mess. _

_The whole group gaped in horror as he made a terrible whooping wheeze trying to draw in a breath. And then with another convulsion, back arching with the pain, He gasped in a lifesaving breath, and went limp against his sword._

_With a shudder, Kagome pulled herself together. "Miroku is your barrier ready?" _

_Miroku nodded at the _ofuda_ pasted to the near-by trees and rocks in a circle around what Jaken had indicated was the affected area._

"_Jaken, Lord Sesshomaru mentioned some vouchers or something he wanted you to give us before you left?"_

"_Yes, yes, of course!" Jaken cried out as he scuttled towards the two-headed dragon looking back the whole time and running straight into one of Ah-Un's fore legs. He reeled for a moment then recovered to pull open one of the dragon's large packs._

"_Sango, is there anything that I missed? Any thing else that we still need to do?"_

_The _Taijiya_ glanced around at area, and then gestured at the puddle of blood around the _Tai-Youkai's_ knees. "We need a hole, a pit that we can bury everything contaminated by his blood; the soil, bandages, rags, his clothes, everything."_

_Kagome nodded and looked to Inuyasha standing near by, his arms crossed over his chest, a stubborn pout on his face._

"_Please, Inuyasha, you can dig a hole faster than anyone here, and it will make us all safer."_

_For a moment Kagome feared that he would refuse; but instead with a "Keh" he pointed a clawed finger at a low spot with-in the boundary. For all of his gruffness, inside he was pleased that Kagome had asked._

"_Oh yes, that's perfect. Thank you Inuyasha!" She smiled and then looking at the wounded _Tai-Yokai_, frowned, bit her finger and said, "But first we've got to get those clothes off._

_***_

_Meanwhile Jaken had pulled a tiny travel desk out of the dragon's pack. Which he popped open revealing rice paper, brushes and an ink stone palette. From the same pack he pulled out a leather scroll case and a carved wooden box containing a set of carved stone seals. Muttering to himself the whole time, he shuffled through the tightly rolled papers from the case, finally picking out two. Then he began to go through the whole laborious ritual of grinding out and wetting his ink. _

_Miroku who had wandered to his side in professional curiosity; cleared his throat and produced one of Kagome's futuristic writing instruments. "Here Master Jaken, try this instead, Kagome calls this a 'ball-pointed pen'._

_In minutes the _kappa_ had signed and then stamped his master's _chop_ onto the two papers. He grunted in satisfaction, handed the pen back to Miroku, with a covetous glance and heaved himself to his feet and bowed. _

"_Hey Miroku, Get your ass over here!" Inuyasha shouted._

"_Whoops!" the monk exclaimed, bobbed a quick bow back and hurried over to where the rest of the group hovered over the bloody lord._

_Inuyasha gestured to where Sesshomaru still crouched, limp over the prop of his sword and grinned, "OK Miroku you get the left side and I'll get the side with the claws. Move 'im back a couple of feet so he doesn't fall into that shit." He made a gesture at the puddle of blood. "Kagome will hold all that fuckin' hair out of the way and we'll get that fuckin' armor off 'a him. Just like shelling a crab. Right?" The monk nodded dubiously but stepped forward._

_Kagome asked, "Still got your gloves?" _

_Miroku nodded, pulled them out of his sleeve with a flourish and slid them over his hands. "I'm ready Inuyasha."_

_The two boys approached carefully, skirting the mess of bloody mud and snow. As they stepped to his side, Sesshomaru attempted a snarl and growl, but unfortunately it came out as a sort of pitiful burble. "Ah shit Sesshomaru," Inuyasha snickered, "a fucking kitten sounds scarier than that!"_

"_Inuyasha!" admonished three voices. And another voice shrieked "You can't talk to Sesshomaru-_Sama_ like that!"_

"_OK, OK," shrugged the _hanyou_, crouching to close his right hand over his brother's hand and then to slip Sesshomaru's arm over his left shoulder. But like a flash Sesshomaru's claws went for Inuyasha's head. Inuyasha jerked his head back, but it seemed that the _Dai-Youkai_ had achieved his target; a tiny screaming mite. No a tiny screaming flea._

"_Myouga!" The Lord growled at the tiny _youkai,_ as a few strands of the _hanyou's_ silver hair drifted to the ground. His claws began to glow faintly green._

"_Wait!" Shouted Inuyasha, "Don't hurt him!"_

_The _Inu-tachi_ all exclaimed in surprise at this and Myouga sighed, "Thank you, Lord Inuyasha."_

"_You can't hurt him, he's mine, only I get to hurt 'im!"_

_Sesshomaru didn't even look at his brother, all of his attention was on his tiny captive. His words dripped with both blood and poison. "Myouga, where is _Chichi-ue's_ body, where are his swords?"_

_Frightened, Myouga could only gobble, "M…M…My Lord, I don't know what you… you…"_

"_**Speak or die**__!" he growled. _

"_Hey Asshole!" Inuyasha shouted, "You know where the old man's body is!" His hand slapped the old worn out hilt at his hip. "Here's the fucking sword! Now lay back and let us at ya!"_

_Kagome had stepped forward and Inuyasha put out his arm to hold her back. "Wait Inuyasha! Look at his eyes, I mean eye. He's delirious. I don't think that he is seeing any of us, really."_

"_What the fuck are you talking about Kagome?" He exclaimed. And then he noticed the strange dazzled look of the only eye his brother could still open. The pupil had contracted so much that even he, with his superior sight, couldn't make it out. "So he's not seeing us. So what now?_

"_Myouga," Kagome whispered, "Tell him about the black pearl in Inuyasha's eye, and say you'll take him to get it in the morning. But that he must sleep now."_

"_Fucking Hell Kagome! Do you want the asshole to put my fucking eye out again?" The _Hanyou_ shrieked. _

_The girl made shushing movements at her friend._

_The flea _youkai_ swallowed and spoke as persuasively as he could from with-in the vise of Sesshomaru's claws._

"_Very well," sighed the _Tai-Yokai,_ "Your __**Word**__; that you will not sneak away again."_

"_Yes, yes, yes!" Screamed the elderly flea, nodding madly._

"_If you leave, I will hunt you down and kill you… Slowly." Sesshomaru growled. He squeezed Myouga once more to emphasize the threat, and then dropped him. As he let the flea go his whole body seemed to go limp. He collapsed over Tenseiga, knocking it to the ground._

_Inuyasha got his arm under his brother's chest just in time. "_Yo Houshi_, get your side!"_

_Miroku clasped his gloved hands around the stump of Sesshomaru's left arm and they lifted him back a few feet, placing him back down on his knees._

"_OK Kagome, you get the asshole's hair. _Houshi_, you hold on to the armor on that side, and I'll cut the ties."_

_Kagome had fielded the elderly flea and as she moved forward, Myouga attempted to jump away. The girl closed her fist around him and whispered harshly, "Don't you dare run away, we're going to need you!" She handed him off to Sango, who nodded back grimly._

_As Kagome stepped past Inuyasha, she could hear Sesshomaru muttering something in his delirium, something sing-song that she couldn't understand. Fascinated she asked, "What is he saying Inuyasha?"_

"_He ain't say'n nothing, It's just nonsense."_

"_But it almost sounds like Chinese, Inuyasha."_

"_Don't be a fucking idiot, why would the asshole be speaking fucking Chinee' or whatever it is and how the fuck would you know anyway, damn wench? Lets get this fucking over with!"_

_Kagome threw Inuyasha a cold look, which promised future retribution and stepped behind the _Tai-Yokai_ gathering up his extreme length of hair into her gloved hands. For a moment she mourned the thought that she couldn't touch it with her bare hands. Ever since she had first seen him perched on the shoulder of a giant _oni_, she had been fascinated by his hair. So sleek, so silky, like molten moonlight. Shaking the thought out of her head she paced backwards a few steps holding the heavy length up out of the way._

_With a few swipes of his claws, an impatient Inuyasha cut off Sesshomaru's fancy yellow and blue _obi_ and then Miroku grasped the edges of the armor where the spiked shoulder piece had broken off. "Ready."_

"_Right" Inuyasha growled and reached for the silk ties that held the two sides of the breastplate together. "Fuck," he muttered rubbing his nose on his sleeve, "Don't you ever bathe, Asshole?" _

_Sango stepped forward, white-faced, as the ties parted and Inuyasha dropped his side of the breastplate, reeling away, his sleeve covering his sensitive nose. "Fuck, fuck, __**fuck**__!"_

_Miroku gulped, but held onto his side, the front falling forward, he pulled it around keeping it from falling into Sesshomaru's lap. The back part of the armor seemed… stuck._

"_That's not body odor," Sango said thickly, "That's the smell of festering battle wounds!" _

_Gingerly the Monk tugged on the back plate. Then twisted the breastplate against the ties to get a little more torque. With a sickening squelching sound the back plate peeled off._

_Underneath… underneath, they stared in horror. The white silk was stained, stained with it looked like the effluvia of months. Wounds that that had bled, and closed and bled again. Wounds that had become infected and leaked pus, closed and then leaked again. And as the _Tai-Youkai_ sagged forward, limply sprawling over his own knees, bright lines of red and yellowish white broke through the stains as the wounds broke open again. _

"_Lord Buddha." Miroku breathed softly. "How long, how long has this been going on?"_

_Then as Sesshomaru sighed and lost consciousness everyone was pushed back from the release of his _youki_ from its restraints. To the humans, it was like standing in a river at full spate. To Kagome and Miroku it was a river of light, an aura that pushed and flared around their holy _reiki_, pulsing warm and then cold. Dancing sapphire, ruby and emerald. Sango and Kohaku felt it like a hot desert wind, repulsing their presence. To Rin, weeping in Kohaku's arms, it felt like her father's touch, so long forgotten._

_To Inuyasha and the _youkai_, it was a blinding, deafening torrent that flattened them against the ground and rolled over them like the high tide._

_Shippo rolled screaming behind a rock with Kirara in her kitten shape. Inuyasha, Jaken and Ah-Un all turned their faces away and dug in their claws against the force. _

_After a few minutes that felt like forever to Inuyasha, the power relented. And as he raised his head, he heard from the surrounding forest the shrieks and yammer of disturbed _youkai,_ and then the smell of blood, _tai-youkai_ blood hit his nose. For a moment he felt his hard-won control stripped away, just like when he had used the last shard of the Shikon jewel in the belly of the stone _oni_. He jumped up, backing away a bitter taste in his mouth, as he felt his eyes flash red and his fangs elongate. "Just a taste, only a small taste." A voice seemed to beg in the back of his mind. "Just suck him dry." Another voice sniggered. "Take it all. Become what he is, that'll show 'im." _

_It was only the memory of Kagome's scarred feet and ankles that allowed him to regain control. She had thrown herself into the digestive juices of the stone _oni_, and had clung to his back. Braving the burning pain, to bring him back to himself. Kaede's herbs had helped heal the burns, but he knew that Kagome would always bear the scars. He shook his head, hard, feeling his ears flap around like a deranged terrier. This wasn't the time to lose control, his friends needed him, Kagome needed him, fuck, even the fucking Asshole needed him._

"_Shippo, Kirara, get the fuck over here! Everyone, behind the barrier! _Yo_, Miroku you ready?" He shouted._

"_Wait!" Jaken shouted scurrying over to Sango, "I must leave!" He babbled. "Here slayer, the scrip for the nearest village and your _Miko's_ village! Head towards that tall peak until you reach the river. Follow it downstream. You can't miss it! Rin, you be good, Kohaku… take care of Rin! And you, all of you, take care of my Lord! Ah-Un, let's go!"_

_Thrusting the papers and a string of jingling cash into Sango's hands, Jaken turned and scrambled for the two-headed dragon. Ah-Un flipped him aboard its back with one of its heads and took off with a roar._

_Sango ran her fingers over the string of bronze and copper coins. There were even a few silvers mixed in. "Huh," she said, "I could buy a rice farm with this!" Then Miroku was suddenly next to her. One hand cupped around her ass, the reaching for the money._

"_Ah, lovely Sango, you're even more beautiful when you're rich!"_

"_Get away you _bakahentai_!" She screamed. Her right arm quivered as she barely held back from a blow that would have knocked him halfway to Kyoto. Then she shoved him away. "The barrier_, Houshi-Sama_, Now!"_

_Miroku hastily plopped to the ground into a full Lotus position, his forefingers held prayerfully before his lips and began his chant._

_Inuyasha stood nearby at the ready, Tessaiga already transformed in his hand. "Everybody get ready!" He shouted as groups of lowly _youkai_ began racing from out of the sheltering forest trees. The first of a seethe of flying snakes dove at the _hanyou's_ head and he laughed gleefully releasing Tessaiga in a brilliant "_Kaze-no-kizu!"

_Miroku opened his eyes for a moment to shout, "watch out for my _ofuda_, Inuyasha!"_

_The _hanyou_ just laughed._

_Kagome felt the ground began heaving under her feet as underground _youkai_ began to surface, "Inuyasha!" She shouted, but Sango was already there with Hiraikotsu; ramming its tip down into the softened soil. The screams of the frenzied _youkai_ deafened their ears and the dying added their own blood to the saturated ground._

_The young _Miko_ rushed for their packs and grabbed her bow and quiver of arrows and turned to stand over the fallen Lord. Rin had already crouched down beside him with Shippo standing guard, ready with his foxfire and an offensive toy or two. Kirara already transformed, had heaved a huge beetle _youkai_ from where it had dug itself out of the ground and was quickly dismantling it._

_Then with a flicker of golden light, Miroku's barrier sprang to life around them, purifying several of the _youkai_ standing too close to the sacred _ofuda_. On-coming _youkai_ bounced off the barrier only to be torn apart by their neighbors._

"'_Bout time!" Inuyasha shouted cutting the last of the fliers out of the air and then he drove Tessaiga into the ground, stabbing a giant earthworm that had wound itself around his leg. He shuddered for a moment, as the thought of Naraku and his tentacles slipped through has head. Almost hysterically, the hapless worm was hacked into mush. _

_With the barrier raised the mop-up of the remaining youkai when quickly. Kagome had unnocked her arrow and was poking the dead bodies; with just a small release of her available power she was able to purify most of the corpses to dust. And then she was back to her dilemma... Sesshomaru._

_She remembered something that she had once read in a book... Or maybe she had seen in a movie? Any way she triumphantly pulled a small bottle of mentholated rub out of her first aid kit and liberally dabbed some under her nose. Then, as she turned to offer the jar to Sango, the slayer leapt past Kagome with her Hiraikotsu raised high. The taijiya slammed into Kirara as she tried to pounce on the wounded _Tai-yokai_. The giant cat rammed into Sango with a roar, sending the slayer to the ground. The slight moment of delay gave Inuyasha the time to grab the _nekomata_ by the scruff of her neck. _

"_Shit, Kirara, snap out of it!" The _hanyou _yelled slamming his fist into the side of the cat's head. Snarling the _nekomata_ turned on Inuyasha. Twisting the lid off of the jar, Kagome thrust it under Kirara's nose causing both the cat and the _hanyou_ to reel away from each other from the strong scent of the ointment. The shock caused the cat to transform into her smaller form. Sango immediately grabbed the small youkai and Kagome smeared some of the rub under Kirara's nose blocking out the smell of Sesshomaru's blood. _

"_Where's Shippo?" The Miko shouted._

_Inuyasha reached back over his own shoulder to bring forth a tied up, red-eyed fox kit dangling from the _hanyou's_ hair by his teeth. The boy had been wrapped up in his own clothes until he couldn't move anything except his jaws._

_Kagome reached out for the _kitsune_, but Inuyasha shook his head. The young fox snarled and snapped his jaw elongated as though his was near transforming. The _hanyou_ grabbed the fox's jaw, holding it shut, and the girl applied a smear of the ointment to the kit's upper lip. With a shrill cry the _kitsune_ kit relaxed into Inuyasha grip his eye's bled tears as they became their usual emerald green._

"_Are you alright Shippo?" Cried Kagome as tears leaked down her face._

"_Of course the brats OK, he's tough!" Inuyasha insisted as he began to loosen the kit's bonds._

_As the last tie fell away, a shivering Shippo scurried up Inuyasha's arm to hide under his hair._

"_I'm sorry Kagome!" The fox kit sobbed, "I couldn't stop!"_

_The girl reached out to take the small boy from Inuyasha, but the _hanyou_ shook his head no. _

"_It's OK, Shippo, everyone was affected. It's not your fault!" Kagome declared."_

_The girl looked at Inuyasha, "are you OK, Inuyasha? I've got this salve, it'll kill the smell."_

"_Keh, that shit's worse than the Assholes shit! Put it on the _Houshi_ and Sango and throw it the fuck away!"_

_Kagome simply nodded and trotted over to the _taijiya_, who cradled her _youkai_ friend in her lap. Kirara was making soft distressed noises and pawing at her face._

_The _Miko_ leaned down and smeared the salve under Sango's nose, and the slayer took a grateful breath. Kagome did the same for Miroku and the two children, who were still crouched by their wounded Lord. "Here you two, make sure not to get this in your eyes."_

_Rin and Kohaku just looked at her wanly. "Lady Kagome, what are you going to do?" Asked the little girl._

"_Well, let's finish getting his armor and clothes off and then maybe I can see what I need to do first, Inuyasha!" _

_With the _hanyou's_ and Sango's help, the last of the armor, the leather petals that protected Sesshomaru's groin, hips and rear were removed. Then Kagome took a deep breath and untied the inner _obi_ of the _Tai-youkai's kosode. '_Oh_ Kami,' _she thought desperately, pulling at the stained clothing," I hope that he's wearing his _fundoshi!'

_***_

Flash back continues in Chapter 8.

AN: In astrology the Balsamic Moon is the waning moon before the new moon. It is considered to be the moon of healing and my choosing your destiny.


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